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We are staying home tonight too ! To much temptation [emoji20] I too have a bad habit of drinking during my meals . HW 313 SW. 309 CW. 274 GW 200 Surgery 01/04/2018

I am pre-op for bypass on 10/28. As part of the process, I had to do a stomach emptying study, and it showed that my stomach clears it’s contents faster than normal. This isn’t a problem, if it emptied slow it would be. My question is, has anyone else had this and does this mean I may have an easier time getting my water in post-op?

HI Jen. I am scheduled for my Band over Bypass on May 10th. I would love to hear how you progress. I had my RNY surgery in 8/2003 and have gained almost 1/2 of the weight back after 10 years. I hope you feel better with the gas pain. I remember that was horrible after my RNY.

Someone (sorry, I can't remember her name) from Israel who posts here e-mailed me that they have been doing them for about 10 years in Israel and most of the people she knows have had to have at least one more surgery for some reason...so maybe it's not as permanent as we have been lead to believe??? Emily

How soon after surgery did you start working out like that-I'm preop and struggle doing 10 mins of low impact aerobics lol.

Hi everyone, I had my By Pass done on December 16th 2019 and for the first two weeks after the operation I lost 12 lbs in weight. Since then I have only lost 4 lbs in 3 weeks and I even make sure that I have (75g) 3 times a day 25g of protein shake that I make with half water and half milk in the glass totalling 200ml and I also drink plenty of water each day, and eat 1 or 2 low fat yogurts and a bowl of soup each day. I am in a wheelchair and I can’t exercise much due to a Stroke, but I try. So.... please if anyone might have an idea as to what it is I am doing wrong, I would be very grateful to hear from them as it is really starting to get me down now. I am now beginning to think it is maybe because I’m British 😜 as everyone else in the world seems to be having much better luck than me 😁. Thank you so much for your help and take care.

Hello everyone! This is my first post. I was banded on 4/23/10 in Mexico with dr. verboonen. It was a great experience all around and I had an awesome vacation prior to the surgery. Anyway if it weren't for the holes in my skin I would really have no idea I had done anything at all. My band is empty and I am going to need a fill as soon as they will let me. If anyone has any recommendations on where I can get a fill in the Kansas City area please let me know. Regards. Windus

I have to disagree, the amount of weight lost has nothing to do with how much you weigh. Everybody is different. For instance, my mother was 270 before her gastric bypass, at 5'7" her goal weight is 170. So that's 100 pounds. The fact that you are only 5' your suggested goal weight would be 115 to 130. So technically you need to lose the same amount as her. I don't see how that would make you any different than her. She had gastric bypass in March and she has already lost 80". On the other hand, I have friends who have had gastric sleeve that have lost as much weight and at the same rate. Whatever surgery you choose, it's gonna be hard, but there's no way of knowing how much or how fast you will lose weight. That all depends on how much effort you put in, but you could be just as successful as anyone else. Most people do lose the majority of their weight the first year, but honestly you would have less saggy skin if you did only lose 10 pounds a month. So it's a win either way, lol!

I know one of the hardest things for me is staying motivated to exercise. I came up with this plan to help me see how far I've come and to motivate me to stick with it. I purchased a large map of the US and mapped out a journey through all 48 states along with Mexico and Canada. I track the distance that I walk/run/bike each week and then transfer that to my "virtual journey" across the USA. I started walking on January of this year, but didn't get really serious about it until April when I made the decision to have LBS. I began in Delaware and have traveled through seven states; as of 9/29/09 I am officially in Hattiesburg, MS and have logged in over 1065 miles. My next stop will be New Orleans, Louisiana. I should be there in about three weeks. Whenever I stick a new pin in my map, I go online and learn about the location where I am at currently. I've learned several interesting facts along the way. So I guess you could say this has been a "journey" for the mind and the body. I have this map on the wall in my office, and it's a great way to keep me motivated to get out there and MOVE. I get a lot of moral support from this too; everyone at work is always checking to see where I'm at. My final goal will be to wrap back around to the East Coast, heading down to Florida. Final destination... Key West. Once I accomplish this "virtually" I intend to treat myself to a well deserved real vacation there! This whole idea cost less than 10 bucks for the map and pack of map pins at Office Depot. The exercise is free. For those of you with limited budgets, think about giving it a try.

Hello Allkitty, I was banded on Sept 13, 2010. I am 5 weeks post op and things have improved. About the pain, I had no trouble sleeping on my side or back. The worst pain i had was from the leftover gas that they used to inflate me and it stuck in my left shoulder and lasted for about a week but finally went away (on a scale of 1-10 that pain was a 8). You are not supposed to lift much the first few weeks so be careful lifting your baby. My first two weeks were the worst but things are looking up now, I really regretted it at first and missed just being able to go and grab whatever and eat it without having to think "is this going to make me sick?" or "how sick is this going to make me?" But like I said things are better now, i've lost 12 lbs and will hopefully keep a pace of 1-2 lbs a week I hope I hope I hope!! anyways if you have given diet and excersice a fair shot and if you are like me have lost weight but not been successful at keeping it off I think lap band will be a good thing. I've asked about 5 people who are 2-4 years post band if they now regret it and none of them has ever said Yes they regret it...soooooo if you feel sure and realize that things are going to be different and food will no longer be your buddy but just a necessity then you are making the right decision..It's tough i'm not gonna lie. good luck! Hopefully more people will answer you people with more experience than me.

I was 38, 5ft 10 and 245lb when I got banded. i am now 150lb at 42. I lost weight quite slowly compared to some, none of this 100lb in 9 months stuff, it took me a good 2 years to lose it, but it was steady and I lost well over 100% of my "excess" taking me well below the top of the normal BMI range. I also ended up with very little loose skin. I've got enough that I feel a bit dejected about it from time to time but really, you cant tell i was ever as fat as I was.

I was told by Dr Fox, 10 day pre-op clear liquids, 5 weeks after surgery clear liquids, then in weeks 5-9 it will be the puree foods with solid food after week 9. Part is due to how he puts the band in. Clear Liquids also include SF Jello, and SF Popsicle.

My doc's orders: 1-2 days clear liquids 1-2 days full liquids 2-3 weeks mushies 1-2 weeks soft food slowly encorporate regular food from that point on. I have struggled with hunger a little bit. The 2nd day was the worst for me. I had a complete emotional breakdown and cried. I think I didn't get enough calories for the day though because I only got like 350 calories that whole day. Ideas for protein are those protein 'bullets' you get from he health food store. They have helped me a lot. I drink 1/2 of one of them in the morning and the other 1/2 at night for a total of 42 grams of protein. That is on top of what I am getting from my diet. Every day is a little better, but it is tough. Anyone who thinks this is the 'easy' way out is nuts, that is for sure! Banded: 07/01/08

abetterme4.2, Thanks for your response. My only co-morbidities would be depression, GERD and back/neck pain. I love my physician but he is very, very conservative - which is usually good as he always checks everything out before he comes to a determination and is very, very careful. But he is just very no nonsense and doesn't like that I use Splenda! I anticipate he'll tell me I should do this by myself, regardless of the fact that he could look at my roller coaster weights if he went thru my history in his charts and see what a struggle I've had. My issue is that I've done so many different diets; WW 10-12 times, New Day, South Beach a half dozen times, supplements, eating prepared meals, self help books, therapy, you name it. The negative things that go thru my head because I feel like a failure all the time are just all consuming and I really don't want the next 20 years of my life to be like the last 20. You're right though, I may have to find a new doctor. I've also considered just setting it up and going to Mexico and doing it. But maybe they require a US doctor recommendation in Mexico?

:smile::thumbup:hello everyone today i went for my last dietian class. got on the newhaven bus to go to clinic, appt was for 11:00 got their at 10:30 took ten minutes. she will fax my paperwork over to doctor,s office friday. hope to get a call next. in the mean time i lost another 12lbs for a total of 27lbs on my own so keeping my fingers cross hope to be banded this month sept.:thumbup:

I had my final visit this morning with my surgeon before surgery 10/9. I was surprised too as he said the only day I would be doing liquids only was the day before surgery. These next 2 weeks will be low fat low carb. He sad he didn't do the liquid diet because it's not good to put your body in shock like that right before surgery.

hi mrs husker, Thank you for starting this up. Yes it seems like when the years pass...the new breed crops up in LBT. I'm sad i dont really know anyone on LBT anymore. i think the last change they made really turned alot of people off. i too dont feel like taking time to learn the new system. they changed it too many times. i use the other website called "Band2gether". it's much easier to navigate. i am 10 lbs away from goal. i go up/down with 20 lbs. the head hunger part is the hardest part these days. i recently started attending OA-How here in texas. it is REALLY helping my head hunger. i'm abstinent 11 days (no sugar/no flour/3 meals a day...no in between) i recently got married...another gift i've received since being banded. my band doctor wants me to go for an xray. i am totally unfilled and have trouble eating. not alot...but since it is unfilled...i should be able to eat anything i want. i'm putting this off thill i get these last 10 lbs off... i will definitely check in next month. i cant believe it has been 4 years since we were banded. glad you have your chemo behind you. sounds like you are getting back on your feet. josie

Well Marchies, looks like we have become a dieing breed. I don't check in as often as I should either. I am hoping that everyone checks in next month on our 4 year bandaversary. I am do so-so. Dropped 10 of the 50 I put on during chemo. Had to have another hernia repaired. This is my second on near my port and it was only supposed to be a small on, well it wasn't. It wasn't just one small one but many small ones. Was told it looked like swish cheese in there. They think that chemo and radiation might have something to do with everything deterating. Well, they had to move my port to the left side and I tell you what, it hurts like #$%%. I had the surgery 1/11 so today is 4 weeks, the hernia side is fine, the port side is what hurts!! If I am not better soon, they want to do a cat scan. I would rather not, I have had one too many of those in the past few years and I just know that one day I am going to start glowing in the dark because of all the radiation. Other then that, my health is fine. Still have no lung power so exersice is something that I have to take slowly. I love walking and have a treadmill set up in my livingroom, now I just need the energy to get back on it. My oncologist keeps telling me that it take a while to get back to being able to some of what you were used to, but come on, April will be 2 years out from diagnosis and a little over a year from last chemo. I think I have just become very, very lazy. Oh well, still here to complain about it. Well, thats all about me for now. Hope to see someone else on here soon. If you are on facebook, look me up, Barb Skilton Fougeron. Blessings all,

I feel that I look sick also. My surgery was 10 months ago, and I've lost 100 pounds. In the beginning, the change came quickly, probably after only 30 pounds. It was shocking to see myself with a drawn face. I'm 55 and 100 pounds less, so the skin on my entire body is wrinkly and sagging. Before the surgery I was one of those who people would tell, you have such a pretty face... Now, I look old and sick. I've always had a weird crooked nose, and it now looks really weird and crooked. I suppose the nose thing is the biggest surprise, I knew people who'd had the surgery and was expecting the sagging skin. I don't like my face now either, and thqat surprises me since I thought that movie stars who are skinny looked so beautiful. Why are their faces not guant? I guess it was a trade off. I'm hearing the advice of water, and that's probably the best thing I can do, I don't stay as hydrated as I should. Hope your face (and not the rest) plumps up soon! :w00t:

I need help!!! I am doubting myself today SO bad!!! I feel like I can not do this. I need someone to kick me in my butt and remind me why I had this surgery. I am starting this thread for my own personal reasons... but anyone can chime in for a kick in the ass or to tell me what I can do. I am going to keep track of EVERYTHING I put into my big fat mouth. I am going to keep track of any exercise I can bring my fat butt to do. DAY 1~ of Kick my Ass into Gear Large OJ from McDonalds~ 250 calories/57 carbs Large Iced Tea~ 0/0 Atkins Shake~170 cal/1 carb 2 bites of salad ~ (all that would go down) 1 slice cheesecake 1 cup hamburger helper Exercise: 4 flights of stairs floor exercises out of Cosmo Thigh Master~ 100 squeezes Stomach Crunches~ 10

I appreciate your update. I too am trying to decide if I am too filled. I got a .25cc fill 10 days ago. This brings me to 8cc in an 11cc Realize band. At times I can eat solid protein, steak, salmon, hamburger patty and other times like last night a pork chop was no go. I pb'd twice this week and have not done so since I was banded in August. On the other hand small amounts of food keep me full for 6-7 hours. I do know I am really having to remember to chew chew chew and eat slower than I have been. I think I will give it another week and if any more pb's will get a small unfill. Bonnie

You look great. Good job! I too was scared when I lost thirty pounds it seems so unreal. I have never lost anything more that 10-15lbs at a time before I got banded. I can't wait until I too am 70 less. I set a goal to lose at least 30 more by my birthday when I turn the big 30 in August. Your picture has inspired me that I can do it.

Abstract Vertical sleeve gastrectomy is a restrictive surgical technique that involves resection of a significant portion of the stomach by means of stapling the greater curvature. This procedure is rapidly gaining popularity and acceptance as a primary bariatric procedure with good results on weight loss. The other restrictive bariatric procedure is the adjustable gastric band. As the results on the vertical sleeve gastrectomy and the adjustable gastric band vary, there is still a gap that can be fulfilled by another procedure. The authors present an alternative procedure that is under investigation that can be as restrictive as sleeve gastrectomy with no staple line or prostheses. This procedure is called laparoscopic greater curvature plication, which is similar to vertical gastric banding, but without the need for gastric resection. The stomach is reduced by dissecting the greater omentum and short gastric vessels, as in vertical sleeve gastrectomy, then the greater curvature is invaginated using multiple rows of nonabsorbable suture over bougie to ensure a patent lumen. This article includes the background, method, initial results, and a brief discussion on this new procedure. Introduction Traditionally, the primary mechanisms through which bariatric surgery achieves its outcomes are believed to be the mechanical restriction of food intake, reduction in the absorption of ingested foods, or a combination of both.[1,2] Adjustable gastric banding (AGB) and vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) are restrictive approaches commonly used in bariatric practice.[5,6] Although these procedures have proven to be good therapeutic options for some patients, they are not without significant complications, such as erosion or slippage of the gastric band or gastric leaks in VSG.[3,4,7,13,14] Leaks in VSG pose a particularly difficult challenge when they occur near the angle of His, potentially generating severe clinical conditions that require reoperation and may even cause death.[4] Since 2006, the authors have been evaluating the safety and initial results of the laparoscopic greater curvature plication (LGCP™), a restrictive bariatric surgical technique that has the potential to eliminate the complications associated with AGB and VSG by creating restriction without the use of an implant and without gastric resection and staple. Methods Using the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) inclusion criteria for bariatric surgery (patients with a body mass imdex >40kg/m[2] or BMI over 35kg/m[2] with at least one comorbidity), all patients underwent a multidisciplinary evaluation (endocrinologist, cardiologist, psychologist, and nutritionist), blood tests, abdominal ultrasonography, and upper endoscopy to establish baseline. The study design was a prospective, noncomparative case series that received approval from the local ethics committee with patients signing informed consent. From January 2007 to March 2010, 62 patients (44 female) were submitted to LGCP. Mean age was 33.5 years (ranging from 23 to 48 years) and mean BMI was 41kg/m2 (ranging from 35 to 46kg/m[2]). Technique Patients were placed under general anesthesia in supine positions. A Five-trocar port technique, similar to Nissen fundoplication, was used. Trocar placement was one 10mm trocar above and slightly to the right of the umbilicus for the 30-degree laparoscope; one 10mm trocar in the upper right quadrant (URQ); one 5mm trocar also in the URQ below the 10mm trocar at the axilary line; one 5mm trocar below the xiphoid appendices; and one 5mm trocar in the upper left quadrant (ULQ). The procedure began with angle of His dissection and removal of the fat pad, followed by careful dissection of the gastric greater curvature using the Harmonic™ scalpel (Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio), opening the greater omentum at the transition between the gastric antrum and gastric body. Once access to the posterior wall was achieved, the greater curvature vessels were dissected distally up to the pylorus and proximally up to the angle of His. Posterior gastric adhesions were also dissected to allow optimal freedom for creating a greater curvature flap. Gastric plication created by imbrication of the greater curvature over a 32-Fr bougie applying a first row of extramucosal interrupted stitches of 2-0 Ethibond™ (Ethicon, Inc. Somerville, New Jersey) sutures. This row guided two subsequent rows created with extramucosal running suture lines of 2-0 Prolene™ (Ethicon, Inc., Somerville, New Jersey). In the final aspect, the stomach was shaped like a sleeve gastrectomy but slightly larger. Leak tests were performed with methylene blue in all cases. No drains were left. Patients were discharged as soon as they accepted a liquid diet without vomiting. They also received a prescription of daily proton-pump inhibitor (PPI; single dose) for 60 days. Ondasentron and hyoscine (anti-spasmodic) were prescribed for seven days. The postoperative diet was a customized liquid diet for two weeks, with progressive return to solid foods in a stepwise fashion. Dietary restrictions were removed after 4 to 6 weeks, depending on patient adherence. Follow-up visits for the assessment of safety and weight loss were scheduled for 1 week and 1, 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months in the postoperative period. Endoscopic evaluations were scheduled for 1, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. Results All procedures were performed laparoscopically without conversions. Mean operative time was 55 minutes (40–110 minutes). Mean hospital stay was 36 hours (24 to 96 hours). On average, patients returned to normal activities seven days (4–13 days) following surgery. Mean percentage of excess weight loss (EWL) was calculated to be 20 percent at one month, 32 percent at three months, 48 percent at six months, 60 percent at 12 months, 62 percent at 18 months, and 61 percent at 24 months. No intraoperative complications were documented. All patients had lost at least 10 percent of total body weight. In the first postoperative week, however, nausea, vomiting, and sialorrhea in occurred in 22, 14, and 33 percent of patients, respectively. In all cases, these symptoms were resolved within two weeks. There has been no record of weight regain in any patient to date. Postoperative upper endoscopy and radiologic evaluation were performed on 12 patients at one and six months and in seven patients at up to 12 months. Qualitatively, the upper endoscopies suggest that the initial greater curvature fold is smaller at six months when compared with the initial fold size at one month, but appears unchanged at 12 months. Mild esophagitis (Grade A of Los Angeles classification) occurred in four patients at one month postoperatively; these patients were symptomatic (nausea, vomiting, and sialorrhea) and were kept on PPI, following the standard protocol. The six-month endoscopic evaluation identified no lesions or symptoms. Lumen size appeared stable (e.g., no dilation) based on upper gastrointestinal (GI) radiologic series performed on these patients at one and six months Discussion Reducing stomach capacity to promote mechanical restriction to food intake is one of the traditionally accepted mechanisms used in bariatric procedures to promote weight loss. There are at least two surgical procedures that appear to rely on this principle in current clinical practice, AGB and VSG. AGB achieves around 50 percent EWL, but unsatisfactory weight loss occurs in more than 20 percent of patients with failure rate requiring surgical revision in up to 25 percent of patients.[7] VSG as a primary bariatric procedure shows medium-term results to be adequate (>60% EWL), with improvements in comorbidities.[4,14] These promising results are associated with some complications, however, such as esophagites, stenosis, fistulas, and gastric leaks near the angle of His. These leaks and fistulas are reported in nearly one percent of cases and can be very difficult to treat.[4,14] LGCP is notably similar to a VSG in that it generates a gastric tube and eliminates the greater curvature, but does so without gastric resection. Initial clinical reports by Talebpour and Amoli[10] and Sales[11] demonstrate satisfactory weight loss up to three years. Brethauer et al12 reported increased weight loss in patients receiving LGCP when compared to plication of the anterior surface. The present series, compared to findings reported in some series involving AGB, has the lowest early complication rates among all bariatric procedures. Even with no major complications to report in the present series, Talebpour and Amoli[10] report one case of a gastric leak associated with a more aggressive version of LGCP, which they attributed to excessive vomiting in the early postoperative period. Adverse events described by patients were minor, lasting up to two weeks. These events may be related to the restriction induced by the invagination of the greater curvature and/or edema caused by venous stasis. Qualitative endoscopic findings suggest that the greater curvature fold gets smaller. This may be related with the resolution of the initial edema, although the radiological findings did not reveal significant dilation of the LGCP at six months. The percent EWL achieved a satisfactory 61 percent at 24 months in eight patients, with all patients achieving at least a 10-percent loss of initial weight. This can be favorably compared with results from VSG. This series is limited by the low number of patients, the simple study design, lack of a control group, the noninclusion of patients with BMI >50kg/m[2], and the incomplete follow-up period. This limits the broader acceptance of these results. These limitations limit the broader acceptance of these results. In order to better study this procedure, an international multicentric trial with centers in the United States, Chez Repuplic, and Brazil was designed (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT01077193). LGCP seems to be feasible, safe, and effective in the short term as a promising bariatric procedure on this initial series Acknowledgment Experimental evaluation was provided by Fusco et al8,9 that had published two articles about gastric plication on anterior wall and greater curvature of wistar rats achieving good results in weight loss analogy and significant better results of the greater curvature group. Recent clinical experience with variations of this technique has been described by few surgical groups. The authors’ initial experience was sent to the journal Obesity Surgery and was accepted for publication. More actualized data are described in this present paper. Original source can be fund here.

Hi! I was sleeved 10 days ago and I still feel horrible. I have already been back to the hospital for dehydration. I just seem to ache everywhere. I hate the taste of protein shakes. I drink one sip of water and immediately have gas. I'm wondering if I have a leak. I also have a high heart rate (115-125) everytime I move. Any suggestions?

David Letterman has not cornered the market on Top Ten Lists! I have developed a list of my own. As the weight falls off, here are 10 things I am desperately looking forward to: TOP 10 LIST Things I'm Looking Forward To As The Fat Fades 10. Flying on a plane without a seatbelt extension or being horribly uncomfortable! 9. Buying matching bras and panties. It is really hard to find good supportive bras in my size that are pretty and have panties to match. 8. People to stop saying ”You are sooo pretty” with an unspoken “but” at the end. They really want to say: “You are so pretty, BUT if you would lose some weight you would be much prettier!” 7. Going to the doctor and not having to hear how if I don’t lose weight I will basically contract every disease known to man! 6. Buying a LBD (Little Black Dress). I have plenty of black dresses, but none of them are little. 5. Rock a short hair cut! I know people say hair adds pounds, but for me it is security. Once I am smaller, I would love to sport a jazzy short-do! 4. RUNNING! I don’t want to jog, walk briskly, or trot. I want to run! Feel the wind in my hair, sweat pouring down … RUN. 3. Shopping in the regular store! I honestly don’t mind plus-size fashion, but I just want to HAVE to shop in the Big Girl store. 2. LONG LIFE – I am only 36. I want to live to see my kids get married, my grandkids, and even my great-grandkids. If I die, I don’t want fat to be the foe. 1. Taking a family photo. This is a very emotional #1. My sons are 5 and 6. THEY take a lot of pictures, but WE have never taken a family photo because I refused to take one fat!. Every year, I vow to lose weight and of course it never happened, so my family has never taken pictures. I cannot wait for this day! That’s about it. I am sure this list will evolve! I would love to see your Top 10 List! Please share …