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I don't know whether bypass surgery would have any bearing on lumbar treatment, but with lumbar herniation that has worsened, get yourself to a physiatrist, preferably one who specializes in spine. Left untreated, you have potential to end up with problems that can needlessly make you unhappy for the rest of your life. If i were you and had no knowledge of a possible lumbar-spine connection, I'd make an appointment (get a referral if you haven't seen a physiatrist in the past) and let this doctor know about the WLS. I'd also mention the lumbar problem to the WLS surgeon. Either or both of them would know if there were something to it. (My own guess is not, but I'm no medico.) The exam is pretty much being told to bend this way, that way, do this, do that, does this hurt, does that hurt. Also xrays and MRI. The usual protocol is first, PT. If insufficient result, injection. If that's futile, surgery. Don't get excited; you haven't even made the phone call yet. It may be that doctors proceed differently depending on variables.. In the meantime, if you're permitted nsaid's get an o-t-c product, preferably extra strength. Keep cool and don't ignore this. AT 2:30am I just want to get the thoughts out in any fashion. I hope I didn't scare you too much beyond Halloween.

I have my first initial intake appointment 12/17/15. I have read that if you are on aspirin therapy (I have 2 small holes in heart) that you can't have bypass. Then if you have reflux, the sleeve could make it worse. I know I have to talk to doctor and see what he says, but am I doomed in not being able to have surgery due to these issues? Anyone have bypass and on aspirin therapy? Any insight you have would be greatly appreciated!

Now that I've chosen the RNY as my revision surgery it was reccommended by ladiesassie to ask about Protein shakes.... A person at work told me I should drink the already made Low Carb Slim Fast shakes- 20 grams of Protein and -0- sugar..... Is this something I can drink right out of the gate? would it be too sweet for me? Also what other types of drinks in powder form are GREAT tasting? I don't mind blending them up as long as they taste good. I really don't want to lose my hair ( My hair has already thinned out from the lap band) So it's important that I get in enough protein to keep what I have left :tongue_smilie: Any in sight would be very helpful to me. So let me know what your favorite high Protein Drink is- It must be sugar free though- I'm sure it will be difficult to find good tasting drinks that are sugar free.....:thumbdown: Hey you guys have a great Tuesday today!!!! Only two more working days left this week!!! :thumbup: Thanks again for your insight!!:biggrin2:

:huh2:Hello everyone, I am just starting to look into Lapband surgery as an option for me. I happened to be blessed with heart disease (six bypasses at age 38), sleep apnea, type 2 diabetes. Weighing in at 270, 5’8”. I am currently taking a lot of insulin (160 units of nph and 50 regular each day) that I can not lose weight at all. I have done the diet and exercise bit. Spent a ton of money on a personal trainer and I am/was the most fit 270lb person I knew, but could not drop the weight or keep the diabetes under good control. So my exploration into LapBand surgery has begun. I would like very much to hear from others with my similar conditions who have had the band “installed”. How has it changed your meds, diabetes, apnea and cholesterol etc. I am searching and reading the site (that could take a year in itself). Any feedback from others would be appreciated. Thanks Archer

Hi Everyone- I am brand new to this forum (or any Lap Band forums for that matter) and wanted to say hello. I am 9 mos post op on the 3rd of July and haven't regretted a single part of the decision to have the Lap Band placed. It's not without its struggles, as you all know, but it's been so incredibly worth it so far. This really has been the tool that I needed to get my weight OFF!!! I am in Boston, MA (had my Band placed at MGH) and would love to see if there are more Banders out there in my neck of the woods. Most of the patients at the MGH Weight Center are Bypass patients and it's been great getting to know them as well! I'd also love any general thoughts or advice or tips that anyone has to share. Anyway, just wanted to say hello to everyone :wink_smile: I look forward to getting to know this Forum a little better. Best, BeantownDiva diva71575@gmail.com

Hey everyone. I had bypass surgery on 7/28 and am almost 3 weeks post-op. Lost 30 pounds from surgery date to first appointment afterwards, only 10 days! Handled clear and full liquids pretty well, finding it challenging to get enough fluids, however, just not that thirsty. Anyone having trouble with cravings? I'm not hungry, so it's clearly in my head. Any tips on keeping it off my brain? I have no problem during the 60+ hours away at work, it's just at home. Thanks!!

Hello Everyone My name is Casey, I have been on my weight loss journey since April 72014. I lost 100 lbs before my surgery. I had my surgery at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center in Baltimore Md. My surgeon is Dr. Christopher You. I am on day 9 and everything is getting better. I had a couple times where I could not believe I did it and got a little depressed. I sometimes feel like I am never going to be able to eat normal foods again instead of liquids. One of my favorite places to eat is Chipotle, and I like the rice there. Has anyone tried to eat chipotle rice after surgery?

I am looking into a lap band after gastric bypass. I had the Roux-en-Y bypass 12 years ago. Lost 100 lbs., kept it off for about 3 years and then started to gain a little bit back each year. I gained about 85 of it back and have been at this weight (290) for 3 or so years now. What I have learned (a little late, of course!) through my journey...NONE of these procedures are some magic thing that will keep the weight off forever. Everything can be sabotaged and pushed to failure! They are just one tool that can help but we have to change our lifestyle. I have gotten smarter as I've gotten older and hopefully have figured this out...not to late. I am not even sure if the surgeon I am seeing at the end of the month will even to a band after bypass. He needs to put a scope down into my stomach to see if it is possible. We are doing that April 23. I have joined Weight Watchers and Curves to help me change my lifestyle. It seems to be helping but sometimes I feel like I need the restrictions from a band to keep me in check. Jenniferhlee: I don't mean any disrespect but it seems to me that choosing to go to Mexico for your band wasn't the best decision. I am curious as to why you would go to Mexico for this surgery? You said that everything goes straight through you or comes back up--how could you gain any weight this way? It doesn't make sense to me. There can be complications with bypass surgery too. The band is simply put around the top part of your stomach-bypass surgery re-routes your intestines. It is major!! Please make sure you have a top notch bariactric surgeon from the US help you.

It's a choice that you would have to make that works best for you. I was going for the sleeve and decided to go for RNY because I wanted to get rid of acid reflex and not have to deal with diabetes or high blood pressure or sleep apnea. My surgeon sat down and told me the differences and he said for long run RNY is a better way to go than sleeve. And I also didn't want to revise anything later on and wanted to do what's right for me. As far as being on anti-depressants, I stopped taking them the day I came home from my surgery. Typically I would have spoken to the psych and decrease the dosage and slowly get rid of it completely. But of course I didn't do that and just stopped them on my own. Do I feel depressed? Nope I don't. But I do still get anxious...so next week is my first follow up after my surgery which has been 10 days now and I will speak to them about my anxiety. Either way I think you can only make the best decision for yourself and what works best for you. Being scared of the surgery was the last thing on my mind cause I am an RN and I am ok with surgeries. Best of luck and I know you will make the right decision for yourself.

I chose the sleeve because I did not like all of the complications that came with the band and read about all of the revisions, and figured, with my medical luck (or lack there of) I would be one of those that would HAVE to have a revision lol so why not go there first.

I've said before that I'm not great with numbers so if I'm a bit off from previous posts, please forgive me. I'm not trying to revise history, just not that observant on numbers. But I'm just now starting my 2nd year in this life and thought I'd share the markers. In mid-October 2010 I started my pre-op diet. I think was was right about 326. Strict program requires loss prior to surgery. In mid-April I started my pre-diet liquid fast. I was at 309. I was 100% faithful and it wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. 10 day fast and I ever skipped two packets. I think my mind was on the future by that time but I was also going a bit numb. I knew I had to do it so I sort of went into denial which worked for me. I was actually sleeved the last week of April 2011. As of today, I am at 235. That's a loss of 92 pounds. It's not tearing up the track. I've seen others who have lost tons more but that's the main reason for this post and something I want people to understand. You body, if you stay within reason and safety in eating, will lose. It just might pace itself differently than others so try not to judge yourself by others. I lost horribly when I was in the 400 calorie a day range. When I moved to the 800 calories, it wasn't much better. But now, in these past several months, with being able to take 1200 calories a day and having the energy and strenth to pick up more exercise (and with almost 100 pounds less stress on my knees) my weight loss has become steady and consistant. As I've added more calories, and 1200 is very reasonable to live with, I am not stopping weight loss. My surgeon preached that if you didn't lose in the first year in his program you were not going to lose with the sleeve. He was 100% wrong with me. This is now my new normal and the key to that is that I no longer fight it because I've accepted it as my normal. It's no longer something that was forced on me to save my health but something I'm thrilled to have done to have saved my life. It feels like I was born this way. I stopped counting every bit of food about 3 weeks ago. I just got sick of it. I concentrate on Protein and take a good multi every day as well as my Calcium. In that 3 weeks I have become far less obcessed with food. I think of it so much less, eat only when I am really hungry (and I do still experience hunger). But now I'm just a human being who has a small stomach. Most days I love it. It's a relief. I had had a bout of depression but I'm also going through menopause, lost 2 brothers (both under 60) and my Mom is now terminal and these things are the tip of the ice berg.. I have never turned to food in stress. My stomach actually gets tight and hard to eat so I don't think the sleeve contributed any to the depression. But I'm not being a hero and getting the depression treated so I'm thinking I'll be better by year end. And at least 10 pounds lighter. Oh, and one more thing. One year ago rolling my trash can to the end of the drive was a challenge. The last several days I've walked a 1/2 mile trail behind my house. And I have very bad knees. So plan for the best. It's right around the corner for you.

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen! My name is Brenda and on September 2nd I had the gastric bypass surgery. It took me a few years to get myself to admit I needed this, and I am happy I made this decision.My surgery took longer than the surgeon anticipated due to scar tissue from a previous surgery. The surgeon was still able to do the surgery laparoscopic after cleaning up the scar tissue. After one setback due to diarrhea and dehydration I pray I am on the right path now. Discouraged at first because of an 8 lb weight gain(which the surgeon said was due to all the intravenous fluids I was given) I am happy to say in a week I've lost 10 lbs! Prayers for great success for all of you on this weight loss journey. Here's to a happier and healthier lifestyle ????????

You look awesome!! Its giving me confident's to push forward for tomorrow is my gastric bypass!! Thanks have a blessed day

Welcome, Julie! This is a great place to learn just about everything you need to know about WLS. Are you having gastric bypass? I had my bypass surgery Monday and it is a whole new world! Congratulations to you for going through all of the requirements to become a healthier version of you!

Hello All, Does anyone have any REAL LIFE experience(s) with taking alternative plant medicines like ayahuasca or san pedro, for religious practices, after undergoing either gastric sleeve, bypass or gastric banding. I'd like to gather this information from people that have first hand experiences or maybe second hand from a friend, but i'm not asking for the opinions from those who have not these experiences. Thank you.

I am starting the process myself. Tried to last year. Insurance would not cover it, but I knew with the Company merger we would be getting a better package. Just sent an inquiry to the Insurance compnay last week. My father felt the same way. Very concerned about the surgery. The problem is he knew of 2 friends that had pretty serious complications with Gastric Bypass. I educated him on some information on the lap band and that really seemed to help. You may ask your family to log in on this web site to hear all of the sucess stories too. Most people are fearful of the unknown. Give them some references so they know it will be the best thing for you. I know when those results start kicking in, they will be so proud of you. Stick to you guns my dear. All will be wonderful!:clap2: Sincerely, Heather

I feel your pain Newbie - I'm 2 weeks out and have been fighting a horrific fungal skin infection and allergic skin reaction to the adhesives, so compliance has been the last thing on my mind. I'm not terribly moody, but I keep sneaking an extra Protein shake here and there. I'm so uncomfortable with my skin constantly itching and burning that it's almost too much to bear if I get hungry as well. I hope I don't slip my band before my first fill! The other part of my mental dilemna is that I am a band over bypass patient and I was kinda expecting to have a quick 10-20 just melt off like it did after my RNY. NOT the case thus far, which I know I need to get over it right away. I'm hoping that once all of the skin meds start working that I can really focus on my Phase 2 (soft foods) compliance and start exercising and just move forward from all of the pre-conceived notions I had what having a LapBand really means.

Hi everyone, I'm new here and have a few questions. I have spent the past few months, almost a year on lapbandtalk.com forum because that was the surgery I wanted, and at the time the only one my Surgeon would perform on me. My surgeon was admit that because I have Crohns Disease the only true safe WLS surgery would be the band, or maybe an outside chance at the sleeve, but he felt best about band. Obviously at that appointment he gave me a list of stuff to get done before he would see me again, lose 18 lbs, see the food shrink, see the nutritionist, see the Diabeties dr, and all the normal WLS stuff. The Dr had told me it normally takes 6 moths to a year to complete the list, and get the ok from all the different doctors, Nutritionist and so on. I lost the 18 lbs in 10 days, and had all the doctors signed off on this within 3 weeks. When I went back to see my surgeon nobody at his office could believe I completed the check list that fast, and they put in my approval request for Band surgery. My insurance, which is good insurance, and the dr office says approves damn near everyone denied me, stating they needed more information. I gathered up all the info my surgeon told me to, it was resubmitted, and denied stating not medically necessary at this time. The surgeon then resubmitted the request, and it came back denied, Due to Crohns disease, and requested my surgeon call the med director at Blue Choice. Turns out the insurance company is worried about corrosion from the band, and with Crohns this could be really bad. My surgeons stance was that the band is really the safest way to go because if the crohns flares up they can drain the band, or even remove it if really needed. Long story longer, I got denied again, I called Blue choice Insurance myself, and asked to speak to the med director and was told they only talk to doctors, not policy holders. I have called Blue choice three and four times a week for months now, they still wont give in and let me speak to a med director. I would think as a paying policy holder I should be able to speak to the person who is making med decisions regarding my health, right? My surgeon keeps pushing too, without much luck. Last week my surgeon calls me and says come in tomorrow I need to talk to you. I go in to the office, and the girl behind the desk tells me, no charge for today, doctors orders, ok great, a free bee. Instead of taking me to a exam room they walk me to the surgeons office, and he says have a seat, at this point I'm thinking oh crap, he is gonna tell its all over and no surgery at all for me. I was amazed at what did actually say, and confused by it at the same time. The surgeon proceeds to tell me that if I agree to switch procedures he has been lead to believe that the insurance company will cover me for the sleeve. This really blows my mind! I have crohns, which is a mouth to anus disease, meaning it can show up anywhere between those two places. While my Crohns has been restricted to my Intestine, and has not been active, it is always a concern, which is why I can't have the full bypass. My Surgeon says we can most likely move forward very quickly avoiding the 6 moth wait for the sleeve due to the fact that I have been in a holding pattern for almost a year now. I want to get this done ASAP, but I also want to know what I'm walking into, so I'm going to continue to read every damn thread on this board that I can right up until surgery. I have spent the past six days reading online about the sleeve, and trying to research the sleeve with Crohns patients, but I can not find any info regarding the two of them together. Does anyone on this forum have crohns? If so how is the sleeve working for you? Has anyone heard of someone with crohns having the sleeve? Has anyone here had the band and switched to the sleeve? Would you get sleeved again if given the choice? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Jade, There is no easy solution. It's a misperception to believe wls does the job for you. No matter what surgery you get, you will have to abide by the rules 100% to reap the benefits. Revisions are great when you are suffering true complications and one surgery is not working out for you. But I know my doc wouldn't qualify someone who just doesn't want to put the work in. They'll predict it'll be the same scenario under another procedure which requires just as much diligence and compliance. Getting wls and getting results takes dedication and work. The difference between pre and post op is that these procedures can help you with things like hunger management, portion control which in the long run will be critical for maintenance. Also, counting calories and understanding how much you are putting into your body allows you to get an understanding of what it means to be on target or to overindulge. It took me years of counting to finally get to a place that I can estimate with accuracy and no longer count. But the reality is, if I consume more than my allotment, I will stall or gain. Weight loss has a very simple formula that cannot by bypassed- weight loss= calories consumed - calories burned. You either workout or you limit intake. No wls changes that.

Hi Jamie Is your appointment so that you can discuss getting the sleeve rather than the Bypass? If so, I know you'll love your sleeve. I was a little apprehensive when getting mine since I'd already gone through WLS before with my band. I was worried it wouldn't work for me like my band didn't work for me. So far it has proven me sooo wrong! I love my sleeve!!!!

I am planning on having the gastric bypass. Going for my upper gi next Friday and I will schedule for surgery!!!!

Hello everyone! A little over two years ago a friend and I struggled to work out everyday. We pushed through and did it though. We were very diligent on what we ate and how much. However with fail we never lost the weight. We both struggled with weight all of our lives. One day I causally mentioned WLS to her. I told her it was something I was going to look into. Well soon after that I had some medical issues and I felt I could get the weight off myself so I didn't follow through with meeting with a surgeon. My friend did though and started her journey to a happier healthier life. Insurance approved her with a bmi over 40. She had comorbidities but didn't list them(I think). Well today she looks absolutely amazing. I am so proud of her. So with that said here I am. I have had chronic problems with gastric ulcers, gerd and joint problems. I met with my surgeon this past November. I did everything. Sleep study, psych, bloodwork, cardiologist, NUT. EVERYTHING! whew. Well my paperwork was turned into Tricare and they denied it. They said I didn't have any of the listed comorbidities. My bmi is 38.7. I have PCOS, endometriosis, arthritis, gastric ulcers, gerd and severe back pain. I have been seeing a orthopedic for years now for my back pain. So my coordinator filed a appeal but I told her regardless I was going to pay for it. My surgery is scheduled for February 25th!! I can't wait. I am hoping Tricare changes their minds but if not so help me I will have this done. I am ready to change my life for the best!

Hi all I had a gastric bypass on 28th January 2012 I've lost 65lbs so far but feel totally miserable. Getting fed up of not being able to eat much expect crackerbreads without feeling sick . Feeling very low when I see everyone being able to go out for meals with there partners and enjoying life when I'm stuck in this life now I don't regret the surgery because the weight loss is fantastic, just feels that my life has come to a halt

I had Gastric bypass on March 9, 2006. Looking to get more inspiration for reaching goal.

Hey guys zoe here. I've just turned 21 an I'm from Mansfield, notts which is in the uk. I'm new to this rny talk but finding it really interesting. So I had my pre op on 20/8/13 and had my bypass on 25/8/13, I was discharged on 27/8/13, I was so glad because my 21st birthday was on the 29/8/13 lol I had my surgery at royal derby hospital which is in derby. The op went well. I did have some trouble the first night though because my pulse was between 130+160 instead of the normal rate so I had an emergency ECG, blood tests, urine tests. They all came back fine. The only thing that would bring my pulse down was my CPAP. I have obstructive sleep apnea. I was diagnosed with in in feb 2013, but they think I've had it years. My weight at my first seminar in sept 2012, I was 352lbs, pre op I was 326lbs and my last weigh in was Wednesday and I was. 302lbs, so I may pop on the scales later and check to see if I'm below 300lbs I'm still on the liquid diet, in that for 2weeks so that ends Sunday, then blended food for 1week then soft textured foods for another 1week then normal foods. I can start the gym after 6 weeks so I can't wait for that I've gone from a size 26 to a 22/24 so far. I've been to the shops with sales on a found a couple if items that's are size 16/18 to get into next, overall I would like to be a 10/12. All in all I'm getting on great I have Facebook if anybody would like to add me on there it's : zoe4queencity2921@live.com, just type that in the search bar and it will come up or just reply trough thread or send me a private message