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Diabetes management is amazing after surgery but not all are cleared by surgery or weight loss. For me, I was told to stop all meds (non-insulin dependent Type 2) day of surgery. Blood sugar has been stable for the 5 months since. I am, also in the normal cholesterol range and came off those meds at 3 months out. On a half dose of hbp med and soon to be off it as well. This is an amazing opportunity and the reason I did the surgery to be more healthy and that is definitely working!!

Way to go Kristen! And congrats on making it to the site! Your loss is awesome! You may want to post your start/now/goal weight in your signature. People need to know how large you started to begin with and that makes more sense on how fast people lose. Usually very heavy people lose A LOT of weight very quickly then taper off to just the 1-2 lbs a week. But your loss is VERY fantastic!!!! I know you work very hard at the band though. You give a tremendous effort in making this band work and you are very disciplined from it! Way to go! Keep up the good work!

My last big weight loss was back in 2004. I lost 46 lbs. on weight watchers going from 234 to 188 and gained 45 lbs. back ... I got down to 204 before surgery and really thought well maybe I can just do it without the surgery, thank God my hubby was there to remind me that it wasn't just about losing but keeping it off. I'm 166 now (4 months post surgery yesterday) and I'm so thankful I went with my sleeve.

You have sooo much life ahead of you. Beg, borrow, go to Mexico, whatever you have to do, but I swear this surgery was one of the best things I've ever done for myself. Use the resources these people are suggesting. Never give up. Tap anyone you can til you get to 5 grand and go south!! Call the local news media and tell them you're having a bake sale to raise money for weight loss surgery! ANYTHING!! Put up a big sign- "GARAGE SALE- ALL PROCEEDs GO TO MY WEIGHT LOSS SURGERY" Maybe people would just make donations! Just spitballing here......... this would be so awesome for you to get your life back and enjoy it! Godspeed dear.

There are quite a few teachers on here. :-) When does your summer vacation start. Mine starts today at 3:15!! I can't wait. What do you teach and when does your vacation start? I teach special needs preschoolers. I love it. I started teaching them half way through my banding process, and some of my higher functioning ones noticed my weight loss, even at 4 years old. My kids I taught last year (kindergartners) say WOW, you look so pretty now! It's amazing what all children notice.

Hi Tee, I just went thru the same feelings about disappointing my doctor with little weight loss..... Don't worry about it--!! He is there to support you and advise you--and he will. I was so afraid to go back that I didn't for 3 months and it put my further behind than if I had just made an appointment and gone to talk to him. He was great. We both acknowledged the problem and got on with the plan. Make an appointment asap. You will feel better just talking to him (not to mention getting a fill if you need one!) Good luck and we are all here if you get "stuck". Kimberly

Hi, all.. I've had several inquiries and got lazy about answering them, so I hope you don't mind my making a lengthy Sue-Post. (Okay, not lazy, loaded, Vicodin...just let me say that you NEVER want to hear the phrases "urethral stenosis" and "urethral dilation" coming out of your urologist's mouth.) For the innocent...My band surgery was October 15th, 2002, in Monterrey, Mexico, with Roberto Rumbaut Diaz, a band pioneer surgeon and a band patient and a really nice, down-to-earth guy. Prior to banding, I went from my all time high of a BMI 52+ to about a BMI of 48 on the day of surgery. For the first several months, I did okay. I recall that for my mom's 80th birthday, I finally hit a BMI of under 40...I was not morbidly obese! But shortly thereafter, I started dealing with reflux. I had to sleep sitting up. I took various drugs, but they merely lessened the problem. One day, I was having Breakfast with my cousin (an RN) and her husband (an MD) and was able to eat only about two tablespoons of oatmeal at 10:30 a.m. and realized that THEY were looking at someone with a bizarre eating program...maybe an eating disorder. I hopped on a train (I just happened to get to the station seven minutes before departure) and went to Tijuana and had Dr. Kuri unfill me. My reflux immediately resolved. And my weight loss began to resolve. So I eventually went in for mini-adjustments. I had unfills for my panniculectomy surgery and for my breast reduction surgery. In between, I had small re-fills. In two or so years, I had a dozen adjustments. But then I started to feel like my food was bouncing around in my esophagus. It would happen once in a while, and then more often. Not every time, and not just after I had eaten too much. Sometimes, I'd be having a cup of coffee before dinner and the coffee would bounce around. Other times, it would be Water. One day, I could eat a considerable amount of foods. The next day, one stupid bite of oven baked fish, and that was all I could eat. Well...after you do that for a while, you tend to get a little nuts. Especially when well-meaning people start telling you you just have to "work your tool." And when a doctor who doesn't have a band wants you to go to a support group meeting so that you can hear other successful banded people telling you they ALL go through that, with every meal. (Yeah, right.) I finally got to the point that most of what I was eating was Soup and ice cream. Because it would usually go down. I decided that, since I was within ten pounds of my pre-op weight, I wanted to consider the DS. I had an upper GI done. My esophagus is widened. In doctor talk, it's "esophageal dilatation." I went to Dr. Ara Keshshian in Delano, California and told him my story. He said, "Are you expecting me to look surprised? This is NOT the first time I've heard this story." He told me that I needed to have my band emptied...but that he didn't have the needles because he didn't DO bands. So I went to Tijuana and saw dr. verboonen, as he was available right away. He, his partner, the lab tech and my husband watched as I drank the barium and it just sat there in my esophagus. Didn't move. When stuff that isn't blocked just sits, the additional diagnosis is "esophageal dysmotility," in other words, the esophagus is NOT moving the food toward the stomach. (Ignore doctors who tell you that EVERYONE does this.) So, I'm scheduled for an endoscopy, to make sure that I'm not dealing with erosion as well. If that checks out, I'll be having the band removed and DS surgery within the next month or two. So...wisdom? I learned when checking with European surgeons that band removal is a booming business there. One surgeon said that 20% of his practice is revising bands to Rny or DS. (Remember, bands have been there longer, so more people have had more time to encounter problems.) That doesn't mean I think they are a bad thing. I just think that the band is good for whomever it's good for...but that certainly is not everyone. In fact, my insurance began covering the band after I self-paid, but is no longer covering it for people with BMI's in excess of 49...because they lose the same percentage of excess weight which leaves them still MO. And older people have more problems. I was 55. Esophageal dysmotility or "dysperistalsis" is more frequent in older people. Adding the band may just make the problem appear sooner and with more vigor. Not here, but at another site where it is mostly newer people, the band-enthusiasm is not tempered by experience or reason. Here, there are old timers who have been through problems. For many, the band is the answer. For many others, it is not. I am one of the latter. Thanks for your time, Sue

I can identify with the knee pain. I had to have my left ACL repaired and about 75% of the meniscus scoped out at the same time. It was a mess. The ortho doctor told me then I would probably need to have it completely replaced before I turned 50. :cry Unfortunately, I've also been recently diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis which is why I was asking about so many questions kind of pain you were having. Have you been to an orthopedic or rheumatologist to have them give you an indepth evaluation? It might be well worth the time to see if there's anything to be done to give you some relief while you are in the process of being banded and losing the excess weight. I know the pain of arthritis can be absolutely excruciating. I hope you find some relief with the surgery and weight loss. GOOD LUCK!

Hey all of you sleevers wanted to say congrats on your surgery hope you are doing well! It is a long road but well worth it sending prayers and positive thoughts! Also wanted to update so you know it is Possible! I have now lost half my body weight! was 240 size 22 - 24 pants. was 240 size 3X 4X shirts. Surgery was January 13th 2014 drum roll now 120 lbs size 6 pants Size Medium Shirt! God bless you sweet dreams angels on your pillows!! P.S. BMI was 38 now 21!!!! P.S.S.Did have problems in the beginning but now knock on wood problem free and weight loss success story! Have to say this, grandsons were over this weekend they are 4 and 8 we were getting ready to take them home husband said let us make sure they are not leaving anything behind. He went into living room and picked up a pair of pants. He then proceeded to say these are too small for me Johnny you are leaving a pair of jeans behind. I proudly said those are mine! Remember anything is possible we are going to be successful and we are going to live happy and healthy lives. We can lead by good examples. If you ever need to vent I am just a message away! Again for those about to do IT! You Got This!

hi.. I was banded on 17th march....I have never thrown up or been stuck anytime.. but my weight loss is slow.....and my weight is stuck now...

I don't know how the plication aspect affects fills. Will be interested to hear what your experience is. 1. but how much do they put in the first time? Depends on your surgeon's protocol & your band size, plus more (see question #3) 2. is there a set (amount)? Not that I've ever heard of. 3. what do they base it on? Your weight loss, your symptoms/side effects (if any), what and how much you're able to eat, and how long your meals keep you satisfied (in terms of physical hunger). 4. do you feel sick to your stomach afterwards? If you mean do you feel nauseated, no, I never did. Other than my reaction to the general anesthesia, nothing related to my band ever made me feel nauseated. Eating mistakes occasionally made me PB, but that's not the same as vomiting and I experienced no nausea. 5. can you request very small amounts instead of 1 or 2 cc's? Sure. Your surgeon may have other ideas about appropriate fill level amounts. If you're not comfortable with a fill amount he wants to use, tell him. Presumably he'll be willing/able to explain why he feels that amount is appropriate.

I'm going through this right now. I posted on another forum and have copied and edited it a bit below and hope I can help anyone in preventing this. As far as your question, yes you can get the pouch back to normal but you and you only can make that happen. It's difficult, but, it can be done. If the pouch is really stretched badly they will un-fill you and place you on liquids for a period of time. My doctor told me 6 weeks of liquids. Holy smokes!!! Here is my post from another thread: Under floroscopy my doctor told me that my pouch was bigger than it should be. She told me that I would get a warning this time, but if next checkup showed the same, she will un-fill me and I will go on liquids for 6 weeks. For now I have been instructed to measure my portions. I did get a slight fill, so, I'm thinking that I'm not that bad yet. I keep a loose band because my allergies and drainage cause the dreaded lapband cement on the pouch that is only dissolved by drinking lots of hot liquids and is very unpleasant, thus I have to be a bit more careful with my portions. I have decent restriction and my portions have been at least 1 cup of food and sometimes 1.5 cups, however, I got into the habit of not chewing well and eating too fast. I rarely got stuck because of my loose band. In my opinion, not chewing well and eating too fast is what caused the dialation. I was also doing way too much exercise and was feeling more hunger and I would eat way to fast and not chew well with the hunger I felt at times. Someone asked about symptoms. First of all my weight loss stopped for months. My weight would go up and down by 6 lbs. and went on like this for at least 8 months. I tried increasing calories, longer work outs etc. etc. and nothing! My biggest symptom was more hunger in between meals and was getting hungry every 2-3 hours. The most obvious symptom that I should have never ignored was feeling satisfied (full) and would get that uncomfortable feeling of "no more" at meal time then all of sudden I would feel a thump in my pouch, due to food going thru quickly, then I could eat another meal if I chose to and honestly sometimes I would. I thought this was because I needed a fill, however, this was not the case and Doc said that a enlarged pouch of course holds more food and will push everything down quickly. Since being warned I have gone on liquids 2 times consisting of 4 days of Protein drinks and 1 can of Soup a day. In addition, I have modified my drinking and wait 1/2 hour before a meal and 1/2 hour after a meal. I now feel a huge amount of restriction and can only handle the 1/2 cup of food at mealtime. So, yes you can reverse the stretched pouch. I will continue to do the liquid thing at least every other week for a while just to be on the safe side. Since doing this I have lost 10 lbs. Lesson learned? If something doesn't feel right get it checked. I knew something was wrong, but, I was embarrassed to see the doctor because I had not reached goal. I think the biggest disappointment is first myself and second, being banded is high maintenance, but, we are the culprit to our own complications in most cases. I still love my band though! Hope this helps anyone who may be experiencing some of my symptoms and have ignored them. jake

I just got my approval from them in the end I july. I needed a five year weight history of having a bmi of 40. I didn't but I sent them the five years, a letter from my docotor with all my weight loss attempts, 2 comirbidties, and a letter from my therapist. They approved me in 3 buisness days.

yes me too i take bp meds and was scared to take them my bp and pluse are back up but its been i monthjust watch it i thing its the fast weight loss my son lost weight fast and he would pass out and hit the floor so its fast weight loss drink lots of water dr told him and use too

Aside from the disgusting taste of the barium, everything was smooth. The band is in place, no leaking noted. Surgeon put in 3.5cc of fluid in the band. He thinks that this should get my weight loss moving again. It's interesting how different surgeons have different rules. I'm to be on liquids (clear and full) for the next 24 hours and then I can try solids. I'm truly hoping that this will the beginning of my weight loss...yet again!

Everyone is shocked when the scale first jumps up by a pound or three. It's a normal part of the weight loss adventure. It is not fat weight. And there is nothing you have done wrong or could do to prevent it. Watching the scale for me is like watching the ball in a basketball game (except each basket scored is a pound lost)... there is a lot more dribbling and passing that occurs than successful baskets! (And that breathless pause as the ball circles the rim is spot on too!)

Does your bariatric doctor have any seminars or support group? Our office has a monthly seminar for people to learn about weight loss surgery options and also several different support groups for the band, gastric and sleeve. My husband went with me for the seminar and it helped him a lot in understanding more. At that time he felt he could still lose weight on his own. Now following my journey, he understands and is now in working to the insurance requirements to get the sleeved also. Maybe taking him to the doctor with you so that he could ask questions. Let him know that you want to become healhty for him and your children and this is best option for you and since your PCP that should definately help also. Good luck in journey. You will not regret it.

I've lost 50.75 inches, and they've been really well-distributed across the areas I measure. The losses in chest, hips, and waist have been proportional---as have arms, neck, and thighs. Though the overall loss is proportional, it wasn't always even. My abdomen, which I never measured, is MUCH smaller now, but took a while to catch up to losses in other areas. Be patient--it takes time, but it'll come off!

Congratulations Samy! Good luck with your weight loss!

Thank you for asking: yesterday was 3 weeks post-op! i have completed my Clear liquids...my Protein liquids...my pureed foods and am now on "mechanical soft and mushy"... this menu until June 2 (1 month post-op) then i am on regular diet ... I have to admit, a little nervous about that... Have to make sure i MEASURE everything.....and i don't think i will add carbs back...they are my down fall.... I love bread, chips and Pasta... So instead of tempting myself i just won't add them back... Per my NUT, i am eating over 60 protein and eating between 600 - 800 calories ... Eating 1/4 to 1/3 cup food amounts... I have my next NUT appointment on June 2 - so i am sure we will discuss regular diet and i will talk to her about carbs... As of yesterday, 3 week post-op, i have lost 30#.... i am very happy with my progress... Today was first day of no loss, but no gain either.. .. because i have been on this site, i know plateaus happen... Not stressing because i am sure my body is catching up with all the weight loss... Inches are changing, clothes fit differently .... I am very happy with my sleeve... tjmom

Emmas mom ! I had my sleeve surgery on Feb. 14th,2011. For thinning hair I take Biotin and let me add I think it has helped tremendously. But I do notice when I comb my hair I do lose more strands of hair than I did before my pre-op and my post-op phases. Also this is something that you need to take for awhile before you notice any difference because it has to get into your system so to speak. I have read somewhere on this forum that your bodys hair growth responds to what your system has gone through in say the previous four months. So what you take for hair growth it may take your body four months to respond to. Also I am an older sleever 57 years old and it was brought up by one of the members of the support group that biotin helps all hair growth it cannot just target head hair growth. So if you have a issue with facial hair remember it could help that hair grow more also. I haven't had a problem with facial hair so I am pretty lucky so far I haven't noticed any growing, but I have noticed that my leg hairs are more pronounced since taking biotin. I started taking biotin in my pre-surgery days. Here is a list of what vitamins I take. Biotin Super Strength 7500 mcg 600mg Calcium +D - 1 tab 2xday B-1 500 mg D3 1000 IU - 1 tab 2xday Fish Oil 1200 mg w/360 mg OMEGA-3 - 2 daily sublingual High Potency B-12 2500 mcg Senior Multi-Vitamin - 1 tab 2xday I have an issue with constipation since pre-op dieting so I started taking a 100 mg stool softener tablet to help and if I didn't go after a day or so upped it to 2 and if I still didn't go I upped it to 3 tabs a day. I have found that the 3 tabs a day of the stool softener works the best for my system and I usually go every 3rd day and I don't need to strain myself to go either. - I know - TMI - right? But just thought you would like to be prepared is all. Hope this information helps you and good luck with your surgery!

I had a little bit of spotting for about a week after WLS. Someone posted an article about how it's from the rapid weight loss and the excess estrogen. I also got a zit! But my body sorted itself out after about a week. I've even had my old Mirena taken out a new one put in since WLS, and no issues other than brief spotting again.

You should be taking in 80+ grams of protein a day, then veg, then fruit. No bread, pasta, sugar... you know, easy foods. if I deviate from this kind of diet at all, my weight loss stops altogether.

My hernia was the largest the Dr. in Detroit had ever seen in his 30 years.....But he did both....The surgery took 6 hours!.....My wife was worried sick and never informed....Additionally, I was supposed to have a room waiting for me after post op recovery, but spent 9 hours in the recovery room "alone," only patient with a nurse and my wife.....Got my room at 4 in the a.m......I had complications with all 3 surgeries....So, believe it or not Carolina gal, I did have issues with all of the surgeries..Lots of scar tissue became an issue amongst other things!..Congratulations to both of you on your weight loss!.....Topamax is "not" a diet pill, but rather prescribed to prevent migraines and epilepsy....Off label uses include weight loss....For many it works, for some it doesn't!..You must find the right dose!.....I started at 25 mg a day per week, then slowly up to 75-100mg, and food became something I really didn't care for!....I believe that lap bands do work, and I have nothing against them....Weight loss is an ongoing battle.....It consumes us at times....But the light at the end of the tunnel after the journey is worth it no matter how we get there!.....Good luck to all and think "thin!"

Congratulations on your remarkable achievement! (the weight loss - not the husband! LOL) Like you, I have a husband who loves and supports me no matter what! We are lucky girls! PS. He does like me more when I like myself more - so that does mean slimmer!