mamaj

Hello Nov. 2010 fellow bandsters, I am struggling with my band and posting here, in case anyone has gone through a similar experience. I would welcome your help and suggestions/advice. Got my band 23 months ago now, Nov, 2010 and lost weight to goal within 6 months but struggled with frequent "issues". Kept getting unfills until a band slip in July 2011. All saline out and seemed to get better, but never got back to feeling the food pass through my band. Finally, in January of this year, had such major problems (couldn't get anything down besides liquids) so revision surgery was in order. Had band re-positioned and sutured in place, plus a hiatal hernia found and repaired. Did ok for a month or two, then started having frequent pain and discomfort even with a tiny bit of saline in my band, so all saline taken out in May 2012. Since then, nearly constant burping, reflux (especially bad at night), frequent stabbing pain between shoulder blades, general discomfort practically all the time. Upper GI (barium swallow) showed a bit of pouch dilation, some esophagus narrowing, but a properly positioned and fully open band. However, still suffering lots of discomfort all the time. Have kept at my goal weight, but am miserable from lack of sleep and nearly constant pain or discomfort. Tested for H. Pylori which came back positive, so did the antibiotic treatment, and suspected an ulcer, but no significant improvement after the medications were done. Family doctor has me on prescription meds for GERD, but it doesn't help much. Surgeon wants to try another surgical "repair". I know you aren't doctors, but I am hoping someone can relate and offer assistance. What finally solved the problems if you experienced something similar? Is it possible that a third surgery in less than two years will actually fix this or should I be pushing for band removal? Thank you in advance for any help.

Hi all, It is nice to hear updates on everyone. I was banded Nov. 16/10 and have had a few problems, but overall everything is going wonderfully well. Started with 3.5 cc's in a 10 cc band right from surgery day and had pretty decent restriction right from the start. After four weeks, was getting hungry every two to three hours so I had 0.5 cc added and felt a bit more restriction once again. Slowly the hunger was coming back again so had another 0.25 cc's added which ended up being too much. At 4.25 cc's, I was getting stuck a lot. Got 0.2 cc's taken out, which was better but still a bit too tight. Finally last week had another 0.1cc taken out. So, I am now at 3.95 cc's and feeling really good. Not getting hungry all that often, so can go four to five hours between meals, and eating the right size "Bandster" portions leaves me feeling satisfied. Also keeping track of calories in and out by wearing a BodyBugg and tracking everything I eat and drink really conscientiously. Sticking to 1,000 calories per day, making sure I am getting 60 grams of lean protein, and drinking 64 oz of water. I do fine MOST of the time, and that is good enough to make me happy and to be losing steadily. So far, so good! Keep up the good work everyone! Cindy (Mamaj)

Hi BB, First of all, just want to wish you all the best and hope your surgery and recovery are smooth and simple. As far as suggestions go, don't buy too much, you won't be very hungry the first week(s). Your surgeon will probably give you advice on what he/she would like you to eat and for how long. Follow your surgeons guidance as best you can, he/she is the expert and has your best interest in success at heart. My surgeon wanted me on liquids for the first week following surgery and mushies for the second week. Then I was told to start solids. For the liquid phase, I drank a lot of apple juice (found it real soothing and refreshing), cranberry, blueberry, etc., low sodium vegetable juice, tomato Soup, EAS AdvantEDGE low carb Protein shakes (those were my staple, and my favorite flavour was the Cafe Caramel), and I also really enjoyed sugar-free popsicles (again a soothing treat, with practically no calories). I liked having warm soup, but it had to be very runny with no chunks in it, and I bought low sodium vegetable, chicken and beef broth, but it was rather bland, to be honest. I have heard some people suggest that you buy the regular chicken noodle soup and strain out the bits and enjoy the broth on its own. I missed out on that. And, for the mushy stage, there are all sorts of puddings and Jello (no sugar added varieties, if you wish or your doctor suggests) and I made runny mashed potatoes, pureed cooked cauliflower (that was a real treat) and practically any soft food that you puree will work fine. I LOVED having mashed sweet potatoe as by the time you have gone a few weeks of pre-op and liquid diet, anything with some taste and even a bit of substance is a nice treat. I am sure people will have other suggestions, but the time does fly fairly quickly and you will not be hungry much at all the first two weeks. It was almost necessary that I reminded myself that I need to eat and I only ate a tiny portion of all the food I bought, so I advise you not to go overboard on the shopping. You will definitely be eating A LOT less than before! Cindy

Hi Sadli, I can honestly say that I am feeling better than I ever thought I could, really! I was nervous, as most people are, and I did SO much prep and reading, but nothing can really prepare you fully and everyone's experience varies. What I have found is a lot of support at this site and elsewhere and it seems that no matter what issues may have come up for me, there is a solution, usually a very easy one, and there is so much support from fellow bandsters that nothing has been "too hard" at all to date. I did make sure that I had a great surgeon and team and I was and still am VERY determined to do exactly what they asked of me. I did not "test" myself or the band and I am incredibly careful with what I chose to eat. That said, the holidays were a bit hard in that the temptations were everywhere and there were just way too many "celebratory meals" with various family members, etc., most of whom have no idea I was banded. This made it a bit hard and twice I ended up stuck in the last two months, both times during a big family meal. In both cases, I had taken something to eat that I had not tried before, I probably took too large a bite, and I did not chew it properly enough and could feel right away that it would be a problem. I simply excused myself and retreated to the washroom. I can tell you that the feeling is NOT comfortable to have something stuck and I really don't want to do it again, if I can help it. However, nobody even noticed that I had been gone from the table for five minutes or so, and I was able to go back to my place, resume a pleasant evening and then simply removed the rest of my plate to the kitchen and quickly disposed of the rest of the food that I no longer wished to eat. It has only happened twice and both times it was a learning experience, and NOT insurmountable by any means. I did not panic like I thought I might and had lots of warning that a problem was at hand, and time to deal with it! ALL the rest of my meals have been pleasant. I eat from small plates, use tiny utensils at home to remind myself to take small bites, chew, chew, chew and enjoy! I get a lot more pleasure out of the taste of food than I ever have. I am actually savoring and enjoying my meals instead of just chomping down and stuffing my face like I used to. I was one of the fastest eaters I have ever met and really worried that it would be a problem for me. The band makes eating a totally different experience, but a more rewarding one than in the past. I think that I eat for longer now than I used to, even though I am probably eating 20% the volume that I used to. If I can answer any of your questions that you may have or offer any other advice, please feel free to write me directly if you wish. My e-mail address is mamaj@hotmail.ca and I check it several times a day. I don't log in to this website anywhere as often as I used to, but I am happy to help if I can. All the best to you! Cindy

(sorry, accidentally hit "post" twice and now can't seem to remove this duplication) oops! :-)

Hi Sadli, Sorry, I am not from Saskatchewan but live in the Vancouver, BC, area, so I don't know the answers to your questions, but also want to encourage you to give them a call if they are the best in your area. I shopped around quite a bit and did A LOT of reading, learning and investigating before I made the decision to get banded. And, I researched like mad at who was experienced with the procedure and would be close enough and supportive for the continued care one needs afterwards. I can totally relate to how you feel right now as I have been there before too. It is hard to get motivated to make changes when you are stuck in a rut and feeling down. I hope you will find the strength to investigate the band a lot and learn all you can about what is involved for it to be a successful tool for you. I spent hundreds of hours reading posts at this site and others before I was ready. The Lapband really is an amazing tool if you know what to expect on this journey AND you are ready to make some changes. I was banded on Nov 16th, 2010, and can't believe how much better I feel already, in less than two months! I can already feel that my head is in a totally different place, a much healthier and happier one, and I know that you can do it too. Wishing you all the best in your journey to a thinner, happier and healthier you! Cindy

Hi Amy, Doing ok, considering it has only been two days. The surgery itself and immediate post-op went really smoothly, so I couldn't have been happier about that. Recovery since is fine, but the weird sensations, lack of appetite, gas movement, etc. are all strange. Hope it will pass soon and I'll be feeling like new again. Doing lots of walking, but still need to take the pain meds (though minimal dose and only every six hours or so). Wishing all of us here a speedy recovery! Thanks for checking in on me :-) You doing ok? Cindy

Hi All, I am pleased to be joining you all on this side of the site, "post-op"! Had my surgery yesterday. Went in at 6:00 am, in the operating room at 7:00 am, awake at 8:20 am, out the door at 11:30 am! Rather quick and much less painful than I anticipated. Now, second day, has been quite good. I have been taking my pain meds, doing LOTS of walking, and using a heating pad on my shoulder when I get that stabbing gas pain. It seems to help a lot. Hoping everyone else who is already banded this month is doing well and wishing all the best to all of those still waiting for the surgery. It can go smoothly too. I guess I have been real lucky so far. But I know to take it one day at a time! Cindy

Hi All, I was banded yesterday and everything is going smoother and with less pain than I imagined, so I am a "happy camper". I had my surgery at 7:00 am and was out at 11:30 am. As soon as I feel pain coming on (3/10 on a pain scale of 1 to 10), I take 10 mils of the hydrocodone (Lortab) and within a few minutes, the pain is down to 1/10. Taking it approx every four hours. I have a heating pad and I have been placing it on my shoulder and it seems to help a lot for the shoulder pain. Glad to be banded and looking forward to this journey. I guess it is time to move over to the post-band of the Nov. 2010 group.

Hello Dodie63 and Canadagirl33, Thank you both for your well-wishes for today. I could not ask for better results, so I am very pleased. Iexpect that day two and three may be worse than today due to the pain meds I was given, but I am feeling really great! Or maybe it was due to all of your well-wishes :-) I totally understand that it is hard to please everyone, so you don't need to make any changes on my behalf. If you are considering a poll, I can make it any evening EXCEPT Tuesdays and Wednesday. If daytime is better, I can make it then too, but I understand that most folks work 9-5. Thanks again for all of your support thus far. You are both very inspirational! Cindy (mamaj)

Hello again Doddie63, Thank you for your well-wishes! I need to get through today without stressing too much so I am well prepared for "B-day" (banding) tomorrow! Thursday evenings are great for me, but obviously, you can't please everyone. I'm sure someone else will have an issue with it, but thanks for trying! Cindy (mamaj)

Hi Patricia, Great to hear from you and congrats on your four year bandiversary! We will have the same bandiversary dates as everything went well at NWWLS and I am being banded tomorrow morning! Yikes!! :-) Feeling excited, anxious, eager, nervous.... quite a bit of emotion at the moment, but overall, I am totally ready to go! Wish very much that I could join your group but I am not able to make it to the North Shore on Wednesday evenings :-( If you hear from or know anyone else who is local and looking for a band-buddy, I would be very pleased if you keep me in mind. I know there is A LOT to learn and that this whole process involves a very long and steep learning curve. I appreciate all of the support that is out there for newbies like me. Thank you everyone for posting about your experiences and I hope to be able to pay it forwards one day myself. Regards, Cindy (mamaj)

Hi B*TOWN GIRL, Going through a lot of anxiety myself! :-) My check-in time is 6:00 am, but it is just over two hours by car, so I don't think I will be getting much sleep tonight! That's ok, not sure I would be able to sleep even if I had the extra time. BTW, there is a new thread about pre-op anxiety you might want to read. We're definitely not alone! All the best to you tomorrow and I hope you will come onto the post-op November bandsters thread. Feel free to PM me anytime if you would like. I don't post too often but I definitely log in and READ a lot of posts here. Most are very helpful. Mamaj (Cindy)

Hi CJ, Thanks for reminding me! I had all of this exact anxiety going in for my c-sections all of those years ago! I think that if I wasn't a little anxious about it, I'd probably be ill-prepared. To go into something like this with no idea that there is some pain involved and that things might not go perfectly smoothly every step of the way would lead to disappointment. The anxiety has made me read a lot of posts and learn so much in advance. I suppose I should be grateful :-) All the best to you in a few days, and hang in there with the pre-op diet!

My surgery is tomorrow and I am barely able to sleep this last week. Constantly having bad dreams and when I wake, I am thinking about this procedure and all the possible "problems". I am SOOO relieved to hear that this is normal too! Thanks all for sharing. The one consideration I have to offer is, what all will you have to face if you DON'T deal with your weight issue now, while you still can? Do you want to wait for the heart attack, stroke, diabetes, etc. to take their toll? I saw first hand all of the pain and suffering and multiple surgeries that my mother and father both went through due to arteriosclerosis, and neither of them was all that big! I concluded that I can either suffer a little now for a much healthier and brighter future, or I will pay a much greater price down the road. So, I am putting on my "big girl" pants and doing what I know I need to do!

I'm from Canada so I am automatically "self-pay" as our insurance system does not cover WLS, as far as I know. It took me a long time to come to terms with the expense, but I calculated that I will be "paying" one way or another. I am on bp meds now that cost $40 per month, almost $500 per year... in 20 years, that's $10,000 alone! And, I am supposed to be on cholesterol lowering meds that I have so far avoided, but will need for sure if I stay fat. That's another $10,000 over 20 years, at least. Then, if you add in the cost of excess food and all of the eating out (buffets and fast food) that I have overindulged in over the years... not to mention the countless diets I have tried and failed on, I have already spent a lot of money on being/staying fat! I would rather deal with the weight loss and regain my health, god-willing, to live a more productive and pleasant "rest of my life". The cost of the surgery is well-justified to me, given what the gains can be :-)

Hi Bamamom, I am going to be banded this Tuesday (Nov 16) and want to thank you for posting the warning! I will be careful. Hope you are feeling better and congratulations on your band! I'm looking forward to joining "the banded" soon. If you are looking for a band-buddy, feel free to PM me and we can chat. I'm 48, female and have a similar amount of weight to lose. Maybe we can encourage each other! All the best to you. Mamaj (Cindy)

Hi Kelly - Please don't be so hard on yourself. You made the important decision to deal with your weight and you got through surgery, now get the band working for you! You probably need to get a fill, so you have some restriction and don't have the hunger and the cravings. I am not yet banded, but hate to see you beating up on yourself. Go back to your doctor/surgeon and talk with them. My surgeon explained that the first month is for healing and not to expect much weight loss between surgery day and first fill (usually one month after surgery) but that I need to come in and get adjusted either in my band OR in my head anytime after that IF I am not losing weight. Don't be afraid to go talk to them(whoever did your banding) and ask for help to get on the right track once more. It's a steep learning curve, I've been told. I wish you ALL the best. Cindy

April, All the best to you! You will do fine :-) I am going in for my band on Tuesday, Nov. 16th, so I will be following you by four days. My son got his band 13 months ago and loves it. He gave he a few pointers though. The first is to take my pain meds as frequently as permitted for that first night. He suggested I set my alarm to wake me up to take the next dose as he did not do that and slept a bit longer, then woke up in lots of pain. Secondly, to walk around as soon as I can to get everything moving again and to help with the gas. Wishing you a decent nights' sleep and will be thinking of you in the morning! Cindy

Congratulations! Thank you for sharing. I am being banded Nov. 16th (Tuesday) and it is such an inspiration to know how well this can work if you put your mind to it and go for it! Wishing you much continued success.

Hi Everyone, I am going to be banded on Nov 16th and am starting the Protein shakes and one small 200 calorie meal tomorrow. My doctor wants me on it for five days only prior to surgery. It is surprising to me how different the various surgeons are about this, and it may also depend on the patient, but I am relieved for me and feel with you all who are doing it for two weeks! Good job! Thanks for starting this thread. I will definitely be checking in with you all and thinking about you on Monday. We're almost there :-)

Hi Favorite, I am not one to give out "kicks in the butt", but I strongly suggest you go back to your doctor. It really sounds like you probably need a fill. I am going to be banded in six days, so I can't speak from personal experience, but I have been doing a lot of reading AND I live with a son who was banded 13 months ago, so I have seen his journey up close. From all I have seen and read, it is a very slow and LONG learning curve, especially for the first year post-band, and finding the right fill for you takes quite a bit of effort. Of course, it then changes as you lose weight, etc. so you need to stay on top of your adjustments. If you can eat almost anything except bread, you are too loose. The Lapband is a tool and is meant to be adjustable so please go back to your doctor and have them do it for you. My son went at least ten times in the first year, usually for a fill, but sometimes they had to take fluid out for him, as being too tight is not good either. He was on several plateaus but an adjustment, even a tiny one, usually did the trick for him, and sometimes it was a fill and sometimes an unfill. When he was too tight, he would eat too many sauces and soft foods and that too leads to no weight loss. Best of luck to you :-)

Hi fellow November 2010 Bandsters... I am thinking of you all who have had your surgery and wishing you speedy recoveries. Looking forward to joining you in exactly one week! My surgery is on the 16th and I appreciate hearing about your experiences so I am better prepared for what to expect. Thanks everyone for your posts and all the best to us all :-)

Hi all, I am going to be banded Nov. 16th and will start my liquid diet Nov. 11th. Getting a bit tense about it and having trouble sleeping, but overall I am excited to get this done! Thanks everyone for all of your posts within this thread and overall on this site. It is just so very helpful, especially when my normal reaction to stress would be to go eat something! :-) This site is a much better alternative to raiding the kitchen. All the best to everyone being banded this month, and if anyone wants to buddy up with me, please send me a pm. Cindy

Hi Duckgirl, Sorry to hear about your negative experience. It sounded very painful! I am not in the healthcare field, but totally agree with Purple3797.... if we ate only the right stuff, in the right way, only when hungry and stopped when full, we wouldn't be needing to lose weight in the first place. My psych eval went really well as the psychiatrist was banded herself and had dealt with all sorts of emotional issues her entire life. It was actually really encouraging to speak with someone banded and successfully at goal weight for ten years already. I suppose if your evaluation has made you think hard about it, it can't be all bad. But if you do go ahead, do it with confidence and the attitude that you will succeed. Don't let her put any doubts into your mind that you might not! All the best to you :-)