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I too have RA and OA, recently had a partial hip replacement due to necrosis cause by long term steroid use for the autoimmune disorders. both my rheumatolgist and orthopedics doctors HIGHLY recommend the lap banding and are will to write letters to that effect if needed by the bariatric surgeon. I do understand that some bariatric surgeons do not want to do the lap banding with certain autoimmune disorders, have even had one deny me, but he never gave a rationale for not doing it. So i do not know what the problem is unless it is the slowed healing process related to medications, etc. but good luck with yours. I am still waiting on the 3 months supervised documentation by my primary care doc of my diet as required by medicare and then to see this surgeon. hoping it works out,

I have Celiac Disease. For those of you who do not know what that is, here is a basic description: Celiac disease is an autoimmune digestive disease that damages the villi of the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients from food. What does this mean? Essentially the body is attacking itself every time a person with celiac consumes gluten. So, eating gluten free is hard enough considering it's everywhere! But, trying to make good food choices while avoiding gluten is even more difficult. I eat a lot of lean meats which fill me up, but sometimes eating a simple piece of meat over and over becomes a bit, well, to be honest, nauseating. A piece of chicken breast, a broiled, ground turkey patty, sliced deli meats. We all know that what we decide to eat is a big deal because what we pick is pretty much going to be all we get in. So, if anyone out there who has had the sleeve also has Celiac Disease, let me know what your meals look like. There may be something in your meal plan that I'm not thinking of.

PBC stands for Primary Biliary Cirrhosis...it is an autoimmune disease. What is yours?

I don't believe that the band would cause auto-immune disease, but as a sufferer of autoimmune Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and discoid lupus, I can tell you that flare-ups and problematic symptoms happen to me when I'm sick for another reason, or stressed out, and I believe that in some ways the band does stress our bodies at least a little; it's not the natural way for our bodies to be. I'm of course not against the band, since I have one myself, and I believe in my case the benefits far outweigh (pardon the pun) the risks. Perhaps your body is stressed out, and you are now experiencing symptoms of something you had all along? Also, more food for thought is that my doctor told me that although research hasn't really shown the causes of autoimmune problems, it does seem like there is a genetic link, so you basically have them your whole life; but for many, they don't experience symptoms until adulthood. Changes in hormone, lifestyle, weight, etc can make symptoms more apparent. I didn't have any symptoms of lupus until I was 26.

I don't even know where to begin but I have spent the last year doing extensive research on this subject. I was banded 4 years ago and was fine for the first 2 1/2 years. I suddenly began having major health issues and six months ago was finally diagnosed with ...you guessed it...systemic lupus and scleroderma. No problems before and no family members with autoimmune diseases. I nearly died last August and I was very close to suicidal by October from the complications before any doctors could figure out what was wrong. I am now on long term steroid treatment, immune system suppressants and collagen suppressants. I have destroyed my skin, blood vessels and tissues with the steroids. I cannot tolerate ANY, I repeat ANY sun exposure without developing a full lupus rash all over my body and vasculitus from the scleroderma. My quality of life is horrible. I am scheduled to have the band removed on June 21st and I am praying that at least some of my symptoms resolve and I will be able to reduce the medications. Now for those of you who wrote in that you think this is just a coincidence...my husband had lap band 6 months before me and about 6 months before me he started having medical issues and guess what...he has been diagnosed with scleroderrma as well. While I was getting an EEG recently I told the technician that I had recently been diagnosed with lupus and scleroderma but before I could tell her anything else she began talking about her friend that also was just diagnosed with lupus 1 year after she had lap band surgery. I hadn't even told her about my lap band! Coincidence??? Hardly, I think the risk of silicon to the human body is as big a coverup as nicotine in tobacco was several decades ago. Am I angry? You bet but not at my surgeon; he did a great job. I'm angry at the people who managed to blame all the problems of silicon on the gel form in breast implants and got the FDA to claim that solid silicon is inert. Dr. Douglas Shanklin did lots of research in the field of silicon poisoning and actually treated (and cured) a coworker of mine in the early 90's. He retired from University of Tennessee Medical Group in Memphis last summer and from the cold shoulder I got when I tried to get information from UT, he must have stepped on a few toes with his research. Anyway, Daemon you are on the right track...see the rheumatologist. If you don't get any answers, try a different one. You will be your own best advocate. I would also recommend that you think bat getting that band removed. Good luck!

I have an autoimmune disease called Antiphospholipid Syndrome, also known as APS, that causes my blood to clot abnormally. I've been taking Lovenox injections 9 yrs. Does anyone know if that would be a problem for me being eligible for Lap Band?

Actually the trauma from childhood was something different, my parents were killed several years ago while I was an adult..but that's beside the point..but just wanted to clear that up. Shirley, you made alot of sense and you're probably right. I just didn't feel like I should lie, it's not in my character. I did want to make sure I was making the right choices and answering all questions as honest as possible. I was under the impression they would help me through everything and that any tests wouldn't rule out surgery but help them to help me???? The psych knew most of my weight gain was because I quit smoking 8 years ago (35 pound gain) then I developed a rare autoimmune disease and was on steroid treatment for a long time and gained 70 more. So why he felt my past trajedies were related, I'm not sure. I do want to have the right mind set, therefore the therapy. I just still have issues with the fact that I haven't met my surgeon who should have already followed up with me about the procedure I had that will determine if I even get to have lapband or not and they won't return my calls. I think that's unprofessional and makes me wonder what my follow up care would be like.

Hi all! Karen here from Pennsylvania. I had my lap band surgery last Dec. on the 16th after trying way too many costly weight loss options that never worked, including about $900 on hcg injections. I'm the only patient in my county who has Hashimoto's hypothyroid autoimmune condition so my doctor says I'm "special" because he's the only doctor who has a patient with this condition, so he gets to report back on my progress, which so far seems to be going really, really slow. I lost 15# in the first month and another 3# in the second month and nothing since, despite two fills, the second of which was just last month. The only difference I've notice is that I have to eat a lot slower, especially my scrambled eggs & cheese, so it takes me longer to eat. Since I have this autoimmune condition which is accompanied by a gluten intolerance, I rarely if ever eat any breads. My menu is so simple it's pathetic: gluten free Chex Cereal or eggs & cheese for Breakfast, brown rice & peas for lunch and again for dinner and an apple and yogurt with each meal. Evening snack, 1-2 bags of microwave popcorn. That's pretty much it. My doctor says that's fine as long as I take Vitamins. I just started my exercising again last week so I'm hopeful that adding an hour mixed cardio and stretching will help speed up the process but I'm not going to stress over it. I'm eating healthy and not overeating and I'm exercising, and right now I can't afford a third fill on the band so I'll just have to be happy with whatever my body decides to do, right? So anyway, glad to have found you all! I get busy with a couple of home businesses so I'm not sure how often I'll get here but keep up the great work everyone!

New to this forum and I just wanted to pop in and say this particular thread was very encouraging to me. I had my lap band surgery Dec. 16, 2010, so 5 mos. ago and I've only lost a net of about 18# so far, which I lost by Feb., so nothing really since Feb. despite two fills, the second being just last month. I'm still eating more than a cup of food but if I don't, I get hungry quickly between meals. Also, I have Hashimoto's hypothyroid with a gluten intolerance so there are some things I don't eat anymore at all and with my autoimmune condition, it's advised that I don't "graze," but instead simply eat three meals a day and one snack. I've been doing really good with that so I think it's just my particular condition that's going to make it slower for me. But I'm only 5'1" and I'd LOVE to be in a 14/16 right now and out of my snug 18s. I was in 20s that were getting tight pre-surgery! But I'm remaining hopeful that this will finally work. If anything else, it's forced me to really be careful about what I eat and that I have to take an extra Aleve or two to get through my workouts because of my really, really bad knees. Oh, and just a few days after I started exercising again I was diagnosed with asthma so now that I'm on two inhalers, my workouts are going more smoothly because I can breathe. But anyway, don't lose faith! You're doing great!! And remember, stress can cause weight gain so if you stress over it, you may impede your progress. I know that from experience. That's what I told my husband too, so I haven't measured myself and I've stopped literally counting calories. I'm eating healthier than I ever have and I'm not over-eating, and now I'm exercising regularly - 1 hr. a day so I think my body just needs to catch up to what I'm doing. Glad to have found you all here!

I wish they had the delete option for those who made a post and want to remove it. For awhile you could hit edit and erase the info and put in "double post" but now the edit works weird too. You do not have access to the original post just that you can add onto the information. Flygirl congrats on the 70 lbs lost. Lucky they found your autoimmune disorder and now you are receiving treatment.

Thank you, everyone, for your kind and honest replies. I know that I'm an emotionally strong person. I've gotten through so many things in life without help or medication. But food has definitely been my crutch, and I guess it's just hard to imagine being in a place where I really don't want to eat every 5 minutes. I have my first appt on Friday, and I plan to ask for the name of a counselor who specializes in weight loss issues. I'm definitely going to line up a good support network going into this. I'm one of those people who always has statistically improbable things happen. The list is long, but includes my daughter dying, my house being struck by lightening and burning to the ground, and me being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease so rare that it took 18 years and a team at Johns Hopkins to figure it out. Ok, I'm not throwing out a sob story here... just hoping you'll understand why it's hard to quiet the voice in my head that keeps pointing out all that can go wrong. Anyway, I'm so glad I found this website. I'm sure we'll get to know each other over the next year or so,and I'll try not to be too neurotic! Thanks again. PS: Thanks for the suggestion about the knee injections, Virginia. I did ask my doc about them but he said there's no room between my bones and they (injections) would be useless. Cortisone has helped a bit.

I found out from the test of the pancreatitus that it caused by my bad gullbladder, I have a "low functiouning" Gallbladder and it's full of stones from the rapid weight loss.. I really wish he would have taken out when I got the sleeve, My autoimmune disorder is just genetic and that along with the pancraititus is was cause the 3 clots I feel SO much better, healthier, more energy. I smile more! I'm not the fattest person in the room YAY! I'm looking forward to the next few months I hope to meet goal by my 1 year anniversay I had the sleeve done at Miami Valley Hopsital in Dayton, OH - Premeier Metabolic- DR. Teel. Most wonderful doctor! I trust him enought that I feel fine with my mom getting it done by him. She is just starting her process now.

I used Dr. Garth Davis for my band and removal. When I was looking around for another doctor to revise me to a Sleeve I went to several different seminars. With Dr. Eric Wilson I did not think he was listening to me and my medical problems (6-8 different autoimmune disease), it was like I was a walking bank to help pay for the vacation he was planning. With Dr. Marvin- he listen to me about my medical problems, he really cares about his clients. I also like that he was a trauma surgeon who could also do the critical care if needed. I know when I was re-admitted to the hospital 11 post op due to a temp of 101.6 with a possible leak or an infection I received the best care. Just an FYI- when Dr. Davis removed my band in 12/09 he left part of the band tubing behind. I wondered why I was still having some of the problems after the band was removed- found out when I got Sleeved.

I too have rheumatoid arthritis and was concerned that would mean I couldn't have the lap band. Since RA is an autoimmune disorder and not like regular arthritis, it's important to talk with your doctor since some autoimmune issues can disqualify you for the surgery. My doctor said that it shouldn't be a problem for me though. I am worried though about after the surgery because the autoimmune issues make me heal slower and leave me with so much extra pain from any minor trauma to the body. Doctors like to tell you to expect "soreness" but that can be anything from feeling like you worked out really hard to laying on the couch crying in pain. I just wish I had a better idea of the pain I can expect.

I spoke with the bariatric center and apparently, due to health problems, my surgeon will probably decide which one will work best for me then I'll have to make the final decision if I am ok with it or not. Guess I'll continue to research both, just in case I only have one choice. I hate that I can't just pick which one I want! I have myasthenia gravis (a form of muscular dystrophy.. a rare autoimmune disease that causes chronic muscle weakness). One of the symptoms I suffer from is difficulty swallowing. If I fail the test they will perform, I'll probably have to go with the sleeve. I also have a large list of weird and common medical problems that can effect either procedure and how it works so I have alot of homework and a ton of tests to go through. Unfortunately, this is going to take a while. Thank you all so much for your feedback! I really appreciate it.

I have a friend who has sparked my interest about lap band. Upon doing some investigation on my own, I discovered that Lap Band is not recommended for those with autoimmune disorders such as MS. Is there anyone out there that has MS and has had the procedure done?

I took metformin for steroid induced diabetes..was on prednisone for an autoimmune condition. Metformin didn't help me much and certainly didn't help me lose weight. I think prediabetes is one of the co morbidities included to get approval for lapband so I would think surgery would only help you.

Thank you all for the honest replies. 7 years ago I had gotten myself down to a very healthy person. Running and excercising were part of my everyday life. I wasn't on a diet but I watched what I ate. I was 157 pounds wearing size 10/12. It seems like a lifetime and over 100 pounds ago. I think that makes me feel like I have failed and what if I fail again? I have alot going on in my life which could be some of the cause for me sounding like an out of control and desperate person. Reaching my mid 40's has brought up some things from my past and my childhood that I'm having a hard time coping with and it couldn't have come at a worse time because it is impacting everything. I lost my parents in an auto accident in '99, I have a child with special needs. I am disabled now due to an autoimmune condition along with some other health issues. My husband went to 3rd shift to help me when I got sick. He's stuck there for a while so I rarely see him and I'm lonely alot. My oldest son is going off to college in the fall and though I am so proud of his achievements, I'm already mourning his absence. I am currently seeing a therapist, hoping he can help me with some of my emotional problems. I do want to go into this with the mindset I should have. I've been educating myself for months here at this site and other sites, I've talked to people who have had the procedure and I have attended the seminar. I've watched videos of the actual procedure. I seem to get really excited about the life change I will have. I know the sacrifices to be made with the band and the outcome it can bring. I just don't want to be a failure again.

I think that the silicone in the band is considered inert, but some people can get autoimmune reactions to having any kind of implanted device in their body. I had a full allergy workup with the allergist (they did antibody testing to see what I was allergic to). But it wasn't until I had patch testing at the dermatologist's office that I learned I had a chemical allergy. I am allergic to propylene glycol, which is in darn near everything. I too had to switch out all of household, and beauty products. I am currently using Burt's Bees and love it! Sorry about the rambling, my point was that you may want to see your dermatologist and have some testing. It was easy, totally painless, and wasn't terribly expensive. Totally worth it! My eczema has finally disappeared after FIVE years!

I am so excited to finally be scheduled for surgery! My date is Feb 28! WOOHOO! I have been attending a WLS support group weekly and finished up all my classes in December. Took FOREVER (not really but it sure felt like forever lol) to finally get my mental health eval. Went through an almost 600 question test prior to seeing the psychologist. 2 weeks later I saw the doctor for my in person visit. I was slotted for 90 minutes and was out of there in 15! He basically asked if I had questions and said a few things to make sure I was ready for the changes ahead. The doctor said he would put in my report by the end of the week (my appt was on a Wednesday). I jokingly told him he still had 1 hour and 15 minutes slotted for my appt so he had plenty of time to write up my report Well apparently thats what he did haha. The group I had been going to all said it would take at least 2 weeks out from that appt before I would be scheduled to meet with a surgeon. The day after my appt, I got a call from surgery asking if I could be there Friday morning. UM YEAH! Of course I would be there I was terrified going into the appt, hoping I would like the doctor since he is not the one I orginally wanted. Well his intern started to scare me a bit. He was suggesting that I might be better off with the RNY. NO WAY did I want that surgery and my family would have flipped if I switched to it anyways. He was going on and on about how I could lose 10% more of my weight, well no thank you, at my weight its not worth the addition risks to lose a few extra lbs. So he went off to get the doctor, now I had read up on him already, everyone said he was a great surgeon but had a bad bedside manner. What do I care about that though?? All I care is that he knows what hes doing. Well I thought he was great. He is very direct, he doesnt sugar coat things, which is great! I appreciated that he was so straight forward with his expectations of me and what I can expect from him too. He is very conservative in his treatment and repeatedly told me if I have any issues post surgery to make sure to contact him ASAP and not to play the waiting game with anything. He is also putting me on blood thinners for 30 days. Normally he only has patients with my BMI do it while in the hospital and saves the blood thinners at home for patients with a BMI over 50 but because I had issues with clotting in pregnancy with no known cause (all my labs for clotting and autoimmune disorders were fine) he thinks its best to just play it safe and do 30 days worth. I really did like him and felt totally at ease with the surgery once I left my appt. Most the doctors at the hospital only require a 1-3 day liquid diet pre surgery but he requires 2 weeks sooooo now Im trying to prepare myself for that. Im going to start it on the 15th because there is no way Im starting it on Valentines day lol. Ive started buying Protein drinks, bought AMP today to try, hoping its not too terrible, especially since its on sale at GNC right now Anyways, move on over people, I'm ready to join you all on the losers bench

Comments like this may not affect those who have already had the lapband surgery or who are in advanced stages of getting it done but those of us who are just beginning. It's very confusing when someone comes on here dogging the procedure that I'm thinking of having. It makes me feel nervous and question my choices. It makes me start scramming to find more information..looking for some fine print that tells me how bad it is what I'm trying to do. Not to mention, my doctor will not give me a referral for any other WLS due to my autoimmune disease, she feels it would be risky. So I only have one choice and she's making me question my one chance. So I was just wondering why someone would want to come on here and make even more sour remarks about the lapband, it only adds to what she's saying.. but of course sleevetalk is more positive, it appears they are coming here to lay out dirt to make the band sound bad. So I end up with self doubt and wondering if I should do this at all. By the way, I did a little searching into the sleeve and I've read plenty of negative in just the 1 hour reading. I think you're going to find good and bad if you look hard enough about all WLS. And after reading for 2 months, I've found that different procedures suit different individuals. I read that the sleeve is for people who have very large amounts of weight to lose. I need to lose 125, it's enough but I don't feel I'm in a chronic stage that I have to go drastic to have a very large portion of my stomach removed,,which is irreversible. I'm looking for something to aid me, to be my helper. I know I have to work too, the lapband would be my partner in crime. I really want this to be a happy and exciting journey for me but I'm getting fatter and very depressed. I want to come here and get motivated and plan my new life. I do that through the successes of others while waiting for my turn,,please people,,don't ruin it for some of us.

Banded on Thursday 12/30/10..... I have lost 9 lbs since. Just had some quick stabbing shots of pain just past center under my left breast..... wondering what that could be... and hoping it isn't anything bad... I was at 340 when this started over a year ago and very inactive due to an autoimmune disorder and the weight. I have cheated some and paid for it, but am back on the liquid diet that we all love so much. Those protein shakes are so good... yuck... anyway, Thursday will be 2 weeks.

I don't have a thyroid and take synthroid. I have no issues losing weight (the issue is usually keeping it off). I think the reasons why someone is hypothyroid may impact how they lose weight. If someone has autoimmune thyroid disease etc......I think it may be more challenging. I do fine because my TSH is consistent on my dose of synthroid.

Thanks to all of you. I'm feeling better now. I actually re read what I posted and am a little embarrassed of my ranting tantrum. I went to the seminar tonight and the surgeon informed me I would be a good candidate despite an autoimmune diesease I suffer from so that was one hurdle. I then asked the nurse about the surgery I may be having and how long it would hold up lapband and she said it wouldn't be long, maybe a month..2nd hurdle. I was told that I had to go through a 6 month pre diet program, that my insurance required it. I found that odd because I called the insurance company prior to going to the seminar and was told what the criteria was and that was not mentioned..hmmm Oh well, guess I'll have to do what I have to do.

Kat, I had to take steroids too, I was already overweight,,,then an extra 57 lbs later and I'm checking out lapband. It threw me into an all time high and I remember the mood swings..oh how I don't miss prednisone.lol I have dropped 16 pounds but I'm still at 261 and have struggled so much since. I don't really have a problem getting the records of my weight history, that shouldn't be a problem. I'm more than 100 pounds overweight now, I also qualify due to co morbidities but I have myasthenia gravis, it's a rare autoimmune disease, I don't know if it will be a hurdle for me or not. I am disabled, I have UHC right now and will be getting medicare in April, should I wait and have the secondary or does medicare make you jump through hoops too? I'd almost rather pay some out of pocket than put up with the insurance company headaches. Thank you all very much for your advice and comments. I think I need to get a journal started.lol It's kind of nerve racking to think about it all. I think writing everything down and keeping good records is a very good idea..thanks again!