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So far I've lost like 10-12 pounds.....But I found out that eating real food comes with a price......I'm sure if I did gain a pound or two, I've lost it all over again!!!!

I have lost hundreds of pounds before the sleeve, and was never able to keep the weight off. Never. It always came back, plus some. This is the longest I have ever maintained a weight I was happy at. Ever! Best decision of my life.

Hi, I am scheduled for November 6th.....I have lost 33 lbs since surgery. How much have you lost in the Pre op phase of this journey? Are you thinking you dont need the surgery? Second thoughts cross my mind all the time. Kim

I signed my consent at the surgeons office this past Tuesday, and my surgery is not till November 6th. Dr did weight me as he does at every visit. I already had the date prior to signing @scarlep. Good luck!

I don't have heart disease but it runs in my family on both sides. Very scary. I do have kidney disease + only 1 kidney which is my main reason for having this done. If I wind up needing a new kidney in the future I won't get it being obese. I want to do this now, while I'm somewhat young and healthy enough to lose the weight. Good luck to everyone!

Just curious. If your bmi is NOT 40 Or greater and you don't have hbp, diabetes, heart issues or sleep apnea (so your only problem is weight) will you somehow get approved for the procedure? Any other tips you guys can think of to get approved? I've had 2 vascular surgeries and had my surgeon write that band would eliminate some of the vericose problem but not sure ghi would go for that. Any tips and tricks?

How can I easily make a weight loss ticker?

We had our consultation with our surgeon last Wednesday and right after that we met with the patient advocate who set up all of our other appointments needed to get to surgery. For us, I think the hardest part is going to be getting our PCP to write the approval letter and also getting our weight stats for the last five years. We moved from CT to NV and we were never bigtime doctor goers. I've had to order our files from the doctors in CT and I am waiting on their mercy. We are lucky in that our healthcare plan does not carry any crazy demands like 3, 6 or 12 month supervised doctor visits or dieting.

My daughter had the band put in a year ago and did not have very good success. She has PCOS and a knee injury that prevents her from heavy aerobic exercise. We initially looked at the sleeve for both of us - her as a revision and my initial, but my insurance would not cover. Having talked to the surgeon and done my own research, the RNY is the best, most effective surgery for rapid weight loss. I, like you, was concerned about dumping and malabsorption, but seeing how successful RNY is for most people AND it is the most popular surgery, I'm glad it worked out the way it did. I know that for heaving patients, they like to do the band first, then after a significant weight loss, then they go in, remove the band and perform the RNY. Good luck to you. My suggestion, don't wait!

I meet my maybe surgeon on Thursday. I'm so anxious and excited. How do I pass the time? I made a list of things I want.... Not look around to figure out if I'm the heaviest person in the room Worry that my chair will break, squeak, crack under my weight BE DONE WITH THE CPAP!!! RUN! I WANT TO RUN! Fit comfortably in a booth Chase my daughter Take less medication Be alive when my daughter graduates, gets married, has a baby, rasies her kids Retire healthy Be truly happy At lease LIKE my body Does anyone else have a list?

I will have my 6th visit on August 9. Calm down! Anything good is worth waiting for. When I started, I told my doc that I really wanted to establish new eating habits. It was hard sometimes. I ate right and exercised. None of that was fun! My weightloss was slooooow and steady. Since then, I have lost 35 lbs. :cheer2: Somedays I was ill......especially when I didn't lose weight. Hindsight.......I am glad I did it. It allowed me to prepare for my new eating and especially learn a lot about calories and serving sizes. The biggest plus......I have 35 less pounds to lose. Take it in stride and learn to eat better. Your Insurance Company knows...only the strong survive!!!:fencing: Before you know it, you will be approved and scheduled for surgery. You will have to adapt to eating better after the sleeve anyway.

I've been trying to get this surgery for over 2 years now. I've done the 6 month weight loss routine 3 times already just for the doctors to tell me last minute that they did not take my insurance. I've went to several seminars, support groups, dietitians, and psychartrics and it's become overwhelming. As you can see I have 3 times the amount of knowledge then Most because they went thru it once and I think it's a waste of my time. I'm jus spending, spending, and spending... Hopefully I don't get a repeat of the last 2 years this year.

Please re-read that paragraph.... The lap band is the safest surgery, but if done wrong it can cause horrible complications, it does have a high complication rate because of bad surgeons and non compliant patients bending the rules. You are correct the lap band surgery itself IS pretty safe if done properly, some surgery centers have no problems, but many have in the past, including that infamous 1800-get-thin clinic that was probed by Congress and Allergan finally stopped selling bands to them. Unless you've been in a bubble, the lap band HAS A VERY HIGH COMPLICATION RATE, Allergan the manufacturer is in the process of selling it for this very reason, for non complaint patients abusing the band, surgeons abusing the band, offering horrible or no aftercare, etc...the list goes on Many post here apparently have not researched the band, or tried to find the best surgeon for them, many do not even realize what is going on with the Manufacturer selling the band, it has been abused over and over again, and warning people of the dangers of the band and how to best avoid complications does not help. Lap band issues usually don't start to rear their ugly head until about 5-6 years post op and have A VERY HIGH COMPLICATION RATE LONG TERM. This is why I try to warn newbies and help them, some people are cocky and don't have a clue what they are getting themselves into, the band CAN be safe if someone has good aftercare, but that still do not prevent issues, this is why many long term bandsters, reduce saline long term. Fourteen-Year Long-Term Results after Gastric Banding http://www.hindawi.c...es/2011/128451/ http://gastro.oxford...tro.got023.full LAGB has been demonstrated to have some advantages, such as ease of operation, low risk and low early complication rate. However, LAGB is associated with a high late complication rate and a requirement of a high level of follow-up management. Although LAGB is efficient in reducing body weight in obese patients, the percentage of patients with successful and perfect weight loss is unsatisfactory. With advances in laparoscopic skills and improvement in other surgical procedures, there is a trend towards replacing LAGB in the treatment of obesity [14]. We believe that LAGB should not be the first choice for the treatment of obesity, but should remain as a therapeutic alternative for obese patients, such as the young and patients who do not tolerate removal of the gastrointestinal tract. Here are some links if you have not been reading up on lap band issues, all you have to do is google: http://bariatricsurg...n-lap-band-sale http://www.yourdocto...nd-turn-around/ http://articles.lati...p-band-20120203 http://www.cbsnews.c...-sales-decline/ http://www.medscape....warticle/758086 http://www.californi...ery-advertising http://www.necn.com/...7d144f251fc5584

So glad you have supportive family and friends. Many of us are not as fortunate. I know this will help out out in your journey to lose this weight forever. Congrats on upcoming surgery date!

Hello all! I have been coming to this site for almost 4 months now and have gained alot of insight throughout my insurance process. I was approved by Aetna 2 weeks ago, and just met with my surgeon this past Thursday. He says I have to lose 20 pounds in the next 3 weeks. Since I gained weight during the insurance phase he wants to have me do pre-op for a total of 4 weeks. My surgery date is April 17th- so he'll meet with me the week prior (April 9th) to check on my progress and make sure I stuck to the pre-op plan, or else he says he'll move the surgery date up. I understand this is for my safety but ugh... It's soo tough! I have a severe headache and find that when I'm at work I don't think about food as much since I'm super busy, but at home now on the weekends is so tough. I'm told to have a protien shake for Breakfast, eat a piece of lean meat for lunch, and a protien shake for dinner. Is it ok if I eat other high protien foods? Like eggs? or cheese? Or should I just tough it out and do nothing but the shakes? Help.

Okay, so I know that technically this belongs in the post-surgery section, but I wanted to share a little about what it was like with the pre-lapband readers because I found this forum so helpful when I was pre. Guess what - I'm feeling great! My surgery was at 7 am yesterday morning and my husband and I were back at the hotel by 9:30 am (we live in another state form the surgeon I chose.) Everything went extremely smoothly. I felt good when wegot back to the hotel, but very groggy, and in a little bit of pain. I took the pain meds and slept till about 1:30. Then we went out for a walk. The doc wanted me to walk 10 minutes, 4 times a day, starting right away. I went with my husband to get lunch and had about half a cup of turkey broth. I ordered turkey Soup and asked the waitress to just give me the broth from the top and leave out all the noodles and chunks and she happily did so. My husband had a steak sandwich and it didn't bother me at all to see him eat it. The rest of the day we watched Tv, read, and went on the little walks. Today was a tiny bit rougher - more pain, especially in my left shoulder and the port site. But nothing unbearable and I actually enjoyed some outlet shopping and got a cute new bag! This evening I am pretty sore again and the doc told me to expect that the second day would be worse than the first day after surgery. My husband and I fly home late tomorrow evening and I couldn't be happier. To anyone in the Seattle area still looking for a surgeon: I totally recommend Pacific Weight Loss Surgery. Good luck all you pre-bandsters!

Hi everyone I have a question I would like to throuw out to someone that might be able to help mke here. On the day I had my surgery I did not have this problem however once I got home the following the day I found that something was a bit off about me. On the top of my right foot in the area where your last two toes are and if you run your finger from the toe area to the top of your foot inbetween the toes and front on top of the foot I can feel sensation if I run my nails across it however if I apply pressure even a light pressure I cannot feel the pressure it is like numb and if I prop my right foot up I can feel like a nerve pulling from the mid part of the calf running down to the foot and now get this, I have been experiencing behind my right ear lobe a slight pressure and burning sensation, it comes and goes and I never had tese problems before going into surgery. When I was in the hospital I had to wear these things called foot pumps that attach to the feet and are secured by velcro and they pumped up air one at a times and then released air one at a time, I had to wear these while in bed. I exercise all the time and did so for years even before surgery so I know that is not the problem. I don't have any lower back pain like I had in the past due to a good weight loss, it used to be that my right leg would go numb once in awhile due to the lower back problem and behind my neck where the top of your spinal cord starts I call it the upper bump area well it has been numb for so many years due to an old injury and well now I have feeling back. Seems like my nerve pain is shifing for some reason. I will see my regular Dr. in the near future and tell her of this to see what she thinks should be done.

As someone who lost and was able to keep off over 100 pounds during my 20s and most of my 30s, I can say that in my experience, it has been much harder as I have gotten older. It is my understanding that the metabolism generally slows down with age, so fewer calories are needed to maintain the same weight. That being said, I have been very happy with my progress thus far. It may not be as fast as in my younger days, but it is certainly better than what it was pre-sleeve. For me, it is all a matter of managing my expectations.

One thing that I wonder is if people who are younger -- 20's and 30's -- lose more weight and lose it faster. After reading boards for weeks -- months -- I've noticed that many of the people with the most drastic weight success stories are younger. I know that when I hit 45, my weight redistributed. I had about a 12 pound weight gainover the period of about a year without any change in my diet or exercise (which was highly frustrating); in fact I actually started eating less. But then the gaining stablized and my weight has been very constant for the last several years. But where the weight is has changed. There was a subtle but definite thickening of my mid-section that I have never had before. I definitely eat less and exercise more than I did in my early 40's but I don't lose weight. Grrrr! So, I wonder if this middle age spread will make it harder to lose the overall weight. I see people who have gotten down to small sizes and am so impressed. But I have to admit that seems completely impossible for me. Don't get me wrong -- I will be thrilled to loose any weight, but the dream of really reaching my goal weight after I have the surgery in a couple weeks still seems like that -- a dream. But there is that little voice that says 'If you are willing to do something so permanent and drastic, it sure better pay off!' Of course, the same voice often tells me that it's impossible, that I'll be the one person that the sleeve doesn't work for, that I would lose weight if I would just try harder, etc. (So I'm working to ignor the little voice, which is continually so negative!) Any thoughts? Observations? Experiences?

But there is that little voice that says 'If you are willing to do something so permanent and drastic, it sure better pay off!' Of course, the same voice often tells me that it's impossible, that I'll be the one person that the sleeve doesn't work for, that I would lose weight if I would just try harder, etc. (So I'm working to ignor the little voice, which is continually so negative!) That little voice has been talking to me too! I'm terrified that I'm going to go through this surgery and my sleeve will be too big. My Dr says he's going to use a 38fr bougie and I'm scared it won't give me enough restriction. I only have one shot at this...Aaahhhh..I wish the voice would just stop already!

Thank you all for your input. It really helps to hear others stories. I talked to my dr. who said that it is really an individual thing that varies and is based on several factors. So age can matter, but it is really not a big part of the equation. He did tell me one interesting thing. Apparently statistically people with the lower BMI have a higher percentage of loss of extra weight. That surprised me. I'm inspired to see the progress you have all made. Wow!!

I agree. If you already feel disappointed you will be more so after surgery because you can not bank on steady weight loss every single month. It doesn't happen for most people. A loss is a loss no matter how you lose it. Get positive there will be many moments of disappointment with weight loss surgery. You have to learn to deal with it.

you should know and will learn, and please understand a loss (any) no matter how small or big.....counts please give yourself a break and not go into this with expectations you feel are needed as if you dont meet those, you may hinder your excellent progress...judge your true/accurate loss by clothes getting smaller, better fitness as inches lost means you are losing weight... hang in there sounds to me as if you are doing just fine ps get rid of the only lost this bs.....you need to talk nicer to YOU

Similar situation here... Today I go to my last appointment. Tuesday is my scheduled date but I have a Cardiologist today and last week I received a denial from my insurance because the surgeon's office forgot to send proof of my nutrition/support/exercise classes for the last 4 months. I find it hard to believe that the insurance will get back to my surgeon in less than a week to give him the go ahead but I guess stranger things have happened. Up until this incident, everything was going smoothe. I feel the same way you are, anxious, nervous, excited, nauseous... Wish I had a looking glass to see the outcome. I have been journaling throughout this experience so that I have something to look back on... Those days I feel like cheatn, not exercising, or plateau, I will pull out my journal and see how hard this journey has been... Oh hell no, I don't want to be back at this weight ever again... Good luck and God bless!

Today I saw my PCP and had my labwork done that my surgeon requested. I also had my EKG. My surgeon also requested a lung capacity test. I wasn't able to do that test today though because I ran out of time so I will go back in a few days. I also have to have an endoscopy so my surgeon can look at my hiatal hernia, and a sleep study. I have to meet with the psychologist in October and see the NUT twice and then I will get my surgery date! I'm excited... can't wait to get it behind me so I can move on... I was embarrassed doing the EKG because I had to get undressed from the waist up.. I'm just so fat that it was embarrassing and uncomfortable because I don't even get undressed in front of my husband unless its dark in the room.. lol.. But the nurse made me feel more at ease by talking about trying to lose weight the whole time.. she doesn't look very big to me but she said she needs to lose 50 lbs. I wish thats all I had to lose. Anyway, I feel like I am making progress a little at a time..and hopefully I will be sleeved before the year is out! :-D