AFmom

Ms. Cortez... I know this is kind of off topic, but I was setting up my tickers today and did my weigh one just fine, but twice I tried to set up the surgery countdown one, and both times it kept giving me some sort of error about goal values...I don't have a goal for when my surgery was done and the values that were there were preset. Any advice on setting one up?

PirateGirl... I was sleeved just a few days after you on Jan 5th and am glad to hear from someone else that they are not having any problems getting fluids down. Since day 3 or so post-op, I am assuming once the swelling in my stomach went down, I have felt no restriction with fluids. I keep reading post after post about people not even coming close to getting their Protein Shakes or water down that I was concerned that something was wrong with my sleeve. I am hopeful that I will feel that restriction once I move on to pureed and soft foods.

BusyHoosierMom Hopefully you will be feeling better very quickly. My 1st day post-op was not great. I got the dry heaves more than once and nausea was pretty much constant even with the meds. Keep us posted on how you are doing.

I had my lap band removed and VSG done on Monday, January 8th, and went home on Wednesday, January 10th. Everything went well, the gas pain was bad at first, but I had pretty much walked it all out before leaving the hospital. I can't sleep in my bed yet, but my recliner is working out great. Having some pain, not really from the incisions, but from the muscle layer below (lots of pulling and burning when I am standing and walking). I am on the full liquid diet and the last two days I have been able to hit my Protein and Fluid goals. Been feeling sluggish since surgery, but finally had a BM today, so hopefully that will help me get back to feeling more like normal. Trying not to take the narcotic pain meds today and just sticking with liquid Tylenol. Good luck to everyone out there!

I am 4 days post-op and I agree that it is different for everyone. I have a HIGH pain threshold, so I was expecting this surgery to be no problem for me. I do have a problem with anesthesia making me very nauseated, so I talked with the anesthesiologist at pre-op and they started me patch the night before surgery and gave me extra meds before and after surgery to help combat the nausea. That being said, I woke up feeling nauseated. They gave me meds right away. I had some pain, but recognized the pain mostly as gas pain. I was on a morphine pump and didn't use it often because it was giving me a headache and didn't really help with the gas pain and the incisions were not really that painful. I had one drain, nasal oxygen (only for the first few hours), bp cuff on, pulse ox monitor on finger, IV, and catheter (not taken out until the next morning). I was up and sitting in a chair and then walking with an hour of getting to my room. As soon as I started walking I started burping, the more I walked the more I burped. I have a bad back, and so for me it felt better to be up moving than to be laying in bed or even sitting in a chair. I was allowed nothing by mouth the first day and so the dry-mouth was horrible. The next morning I felt much better once the catheter was out. That made moving around much easier. I felt ready to go home that day, but my surgeon makes everyone stay 2 nights. I continued to walk, had my IV discontinued, and looked forward to going home.

I am having my band out, and hopefully the sleeve at the same time, on Monday (Jan 5). For those of you who have had the band out what was the worst pain? I am really concerned about the pain from having the port removed. My port flipped early on and I had a second surgery to fix it and so it was stitched into place and it has been causing lots of pain lately. Looking forward to having it out, but not looking forward to pain. So, I guess what I am asking is, was the pain much worse from the port when it put in vs when it was taken out? Also, anything you wish you had known before band to sleeve revision surgery? I would love to hear your experience. Thanks

I am going to make the swiss oatmeal tonight...can't wait to try it in the morning! Since you say you only eat about 1/3 I am assuming that is is okay to refrigerate it for a few days? Thanks again, Michelle

Dr. Smith did my surgery May 6, 2010 in Albuquerque and I could not be happier with the care I have received. I have lost over 100 pounds and I am just about 10 pounds away from the goal weight he set for me before surgery and about 30 pounds away from what I consider my ultimate goal weight. Doctors and staff in Albuquerque are all great Michelle

I have never even heard to Swiss Oatmeal, but it sounds wonderful and filling! I am going to try it out. Thanks for sharing the recipe @Melissannde - do you just mix according to the regular directions and then put the bowl in the crock-pot? That sounds like a great idea too because I am the only oatmeal eater in my family and I don't like having to clean the pot I cook it in and the bowl I eat it out of. Michelle

I burp much more frequently since having lap band. I also hiccup when I drink too fast and when I am getting to the point where I need to stop eating! Like you, my burps just seem to come out, without any warning! I think that it is pretty common Michelle

I am 7 months out from surgery and already knocking on the 100 pound weight loss mark. I am thrilled that things have gone so well, but I wonder, is it harder to keep the weight off than it was to lose it? I have tried to stick pretty close to the rules my doctor set forth, but I have not been perfect, and yet I have lost weight really easily. I am still 24 pounds away from my goal, so there is still work to be done, but I wonder for those bandsters out there who have been successful long term (2 plus years) what is the key? Thanks for your input Michelle

Thanks for the great responses! It is encouraging to hear from those who have been successful and are continuing to be successful. I know that Lap Band is different than bypass, but I read something from a bypass patient that said keeping the weight off is much harder than losing it. She warned that the people who were in the first 6 month post-op stage, that even though they were easily losing while not eating by the rules, that if they would be in for a surprise down the road when they had a hard time keeping it off. I guess that is one of the downsides of bypass, is that it is not adjustable. Hopefully if we were having those problems a fill would get us back on track. Thanks, Michelle

Salads work well for me, and always have. I am 7 months post-op and I was worried that I would not be able to eat salads after the band because I head about so many people having problems. I start with spinach, make sure I add protein, and a little dressing helps it slide right down

I have the Lap Band, not Realize band, and my port flipped. First fill was VERY difficult under fluro, but he eventually manipulated it into place, second fill was a total no go and so I was scheduled for surgery to reposition it. Original surgery in May, port surgery in August, and everything has been fine since then. My doctor used mesh and sutures to hold it in place. One question I have is why don't they use the mesh and sutures in the first place? This seems to be a common problem, and it just makes sense to make it more stable from the beginning! Oh well, at least it is fixed now Michelle

I had to get a small un-fill (.25 cc) a few weeks ago because I had gotten to the point that I could not eat solid foods at all, even Soup with soft veggies would not go down. I had been tight for almost 2 weeks, and it was getting worse. I loved the extra weight that I was losing, but once I got to the point where even liquids were difficult I called and asked for an un-fill. I felt much better immediately, but after a few days when I went back on solid foods I found that my appetite had returned with a vengeance, along with the ability to eat right along with that appetite! For the first time since getting my band six months ago, the scale is not going down, but up!!! One thing that this has taught me is how much I need my band. Without good restriction I don't have the will power to follow the rules. I am scheduled for a fill next Tuesday and I can't wait.

Sorry...I know that you are asking for Tricare Standard people to reply, and I am Tricare Prime, but I am surprised that it is all that different. My doc says that Tricare is about the easiest insurance to work with. I was approved right away because of my BMI alone (over 40) and I also have high blood pressure. I agree, call and have them tell you exactly what the qualifications are. Hope it works out for you quickly! Michelle

I totally agree with Bob...getting the lap band is the best thing that I have ever done for myself! I was banded almost 6 months ago and I have lost 84 of the 124 pounds that I need to lose to reach my goal! It has been so much easier than I expected. Even on my surgery day I had doubts and questioned if getting the lap band was the right decision. Of all of my fears, the biggest is that it just would not work for me and I would fail at the lap band just like I had failed at losing weight in the past. I wasn't sure that I could give up soft drinks and bread, but it has not been a struggle. I simply don't desire those things anymore! I feel like the lap band is a wonderful gift and my only regret is not giving it myself sooner! My advice, do your research, find a good doctor, and then go for it! Michelle

Mine is just to the left and about an inch above my belly button. Mine was originally a little higher and had to be moved due to the port flipping, but was never anywhere nearly as high as my breast area.

My husband is active duty and we are covered under Tricare Prime and pretty much everything was covered. The only thing that was not covered was my required appointment with the nutritionist. I was covered for everything else at 100% with no co-pay. I have a friend that is about to have the surgery with the same doc, but her husband is retired and they are covered with Tricare Prime and she does have co-pays and my doc's office has started charging a program fee of $500 (includes nutritionist, psych eval, Vitamins, and Protein powder) and she said that will be out of pocket for her. From what I have heard Tricare is just about the best insurance to have for WLS. No hoops to jump through...just BMI of 40 or above or 35 with co-morbidities.

My doc leaves a little fluid in the band at the time of surgery, and then starts fill about a month after surgery. He does emphasize that the time after surgery until fills start is for healing and not weight loss, but still most people do lose weight during that time. You will lose weight much easier after you get a few fills, but I did lose during that post-op period. Good luck!

Okay, I am not a pre-op bandster, but it was not that long ago that I was on your side. I had lots of fears, but my biggest is that the Lap Band would not work for me, that it would just be yet another failed weight loss attempt. I worried that I would not be able to make the changes necessary to make the surgery work because if I could control what I ate then I would not be at the point I was at. The thing that allowed me to go ahead with the surgery was the thought that I could not continue down the path I was on...I was over 300 pounds! When it came down to it I knew I had to make a change. My only regret is that I did not have the surgery 5 years ago when I first starting thinking about it. If you have any questions I would be happy to answer them. Do your research, choose a great doctor, and make the decision that is right for you. Michelle

I have no idea how it happened, and neither does my doctor, but it does happen sometimes. I had no idea that it had flipped until I went into my first fill. My doc had a really hard time accessing the port and even under fluro it took a long time and lots of manipulating to get that fill in. He hoped that it would settle into place by the second fill, but within a few minutes he could see that it had totally flipped and could not be accessed. The only way to fix it is to have surgery to reposition it. They went in through the original incision, moved it, secured it with mesh and a few stitches. I had a fill the next day and one more since then it has stayed put this time. Other than that bump, things have gone really well. I am just over 5 month out from surgery and have lost over 70 pounds :thumbup:

I could have had surgery 3 weeks after attending the seminar because my insurance has no requirements other than BMI above 40. My doctor requires the psyche eval and nutritionist visit. My schedule would not allow the original surgery date, so I postponed it by 3 weeks and so my surgery was 6 weeks from the seminar date. Michelle

In the beginning I was VERY private about it. My husband and children where the only ones who knew anything in the beginning. Once I had approval and a surgery date I told my kids, my parents, and only about 4 friends. I did not want to have to explain or defend my decision to anyone before the surgery. After surgery I did not want everyone looking at me always wondering how much weight I had lost. Now I am almost 5 months out and people are really noticing. I still have not made a grand announcement, but if anyone asks how I am losing weight I tell them. So far, everyone has been pretty supportive...at least to my face I am glad that I did not tell everyone at the beginning, but I am getting to the point now that I want to shout it to the rooftops! It is wonderful to FINALLY be successful at weight loss. Michelle

Sounds like you are doing great! My surgery was May 6th, and my total weight loss, including the 16 pounds from the pre-op diet, is 72 pounds. My weight loss has been a bit backwards from yours, but it was because my port flipped and after my first fill I had to wait for over 2 months to schedule surgery to fix the port and then did not get my second fill until late August, then my 3rd fill in mid September. Now that I have great restriction the pounds are falling off, well, maybe not that fast, but much faster than they were! I am a little over half-way to my goal, and now that my lap-band is working for me I feel like nothing is going to keep me from reaching my goal. As well as the lap-band working I am exercising on a consistent basis Hope that all of the May Bandsters out there are doing well and working towards their weight loss goals! Michelle