Weight Loss Surgery If you've had it, or are considering it, share your discussions here

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Old 04-08-2007, 05:03 AM   #16  
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Default Gastric By Pass

I had GB on 10 Jan 07, to day I've lost 45 pounds and I feel great and have no regrets. It is tough learning to eat the new way and break the old habits, but you can't argue with progress. I was not extremly heavy just heavy enough to qualify, but I knew what was coming with my age and the genes in my family so I wanted to nip this all in the bud very quickly. Adding to all my other problems I also have intersititial cystitis and I had just quilt smoking, of course all of this months prior to surgery.

Karen
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Old 04-18-2007, 09:38 AM   #17  
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Hi,
I'm new here. I've been reading but not posting til today.
I am a former lapbander. I had the French Midband. It was placed in Tijuana, Mexico in Sept 2004. My surgeon filled the 10cc band with 7cc of solution at surgery. He said my stomach was small and need the fill to fit correctly.

The surgery was a breeze, the recovery was quick, and I did well with it, losing 96 pounds in about 18 months with no additional fills.

I'd had some aches and pains in my left abdomen, but no real issues, then I noticed I was regaining weight. I thought I needed a fill so finally came up with the cash in Oct last year to go to Mexico again and get a fill with flouro.

To my devastation, my band had eroded. I had to go home and gather more money, then go back a month later and have it removed. I had regained 40 pounds by the time it was removed, and have gained 10 more since November. Mexico ended up costing me more than having it done here!

I started Nutrisystem this month, but I'm not doing well with it. I'm not a fan of most of the foods, and with having a family to cook for, I can't concentrate on my own meals.

I have several family members who have had bypasses, and none are complaint free, in fact 2 who are several years out are very sick with gbp side effects. I guess the folks in my family aren't good candidates for that procedure.

I am currently considering the gastric sleeve as rebanding isn't generally recommended for patients who erode because the risk for re-erosion is really high. I've been researching off and on for several months, but I haven't found much about the sleeve with regard to negative effects, no patient posted side effects, no patient complaints. But the idea of the stomach amputation still frightens me.

I hate feeling this desperate!
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Old 04-18-2007, 11:05 AM   #18  
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Pam... did you have an unusual side effects that caused the errosion? do they know what caused it?

Wow, I'm so sorry that happened to you, it must have been devistating to say the least.

I don't know anything about the procedure you are thinking of but I"m sure some one will chime in here.

to 3FC's
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Old 04-19-2007, 03:32 PM   #19  
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Hi again,

I didn't mean this to be a thread hijack, I was just sharing my banding experience/prespective for the member who started it, and asking for more info on the sleeve.

Yep, I'm an RN, I work in a large teaching hospital, but I don't know the bariatric surgeon for our hospital, he works in a different area. I don't have bariatric insurance coverage, so I'm self pay for all of this.

I have been and I am still doing much of my own research. I'm not looking for sleeve gastrectomy as rebanding. I don't think those are combined procedures. I am looking for a revision procedure, something to give me back the restriction, but I've ruled out the band.

The sleeve isn't really a new procedure except in it's stand alone context. What I'm looking for are folks who've had it done, preferably for a bit of time, so they might share with me what they've learned along the way. Pros, cons, and side effects. I wonder what to expect from the surgeon and surgery.

I live in an athletic family, no one in my immediate family is overweight except me. I started gaining weight in my early 30's, I've been obese for about 10 years. The relatives I have with wls issues are cousins, and cousins wives. My mother has been on a diet my whole life, but has never been more than a few pounds overweight. I have several aunts on my dads side that range from a little overweight to over #300. My dad was thin.

I guess I wasn't really clear with my post in some areas. I didn't really have any side effects pre-erosion. I was one of the few who had it relatively smooth. The weight just melted away, and until about 18 months out I didn't have the first inkling that anything was going wrong. I felt great. I am only guessing that the pains I had prediagnosis were related to the erosion, the band was 80% inside my stomach.

I don't know why it eroded, and I suspect that my surgeon doesn't know either, though I doubt they would tell me if they did. I suspected the early fill may have been a factor, but I question whether that would have taken 18 months. I know that it's supposed to be a very rare occurrence, and they do say they generally don't know that cause.

I haven't tried weight watchers, I do buy some of the prepacked meals for lunches or dinners, but I haven't followed the plan, too many of my friends have, and I don't see great results for them, so I'm not inclined to invest in it.

I have tried just about everything else though, only the band really worked for me. I miss it. That's why 6 months out, I'm heating up my research on the sleeve procedure, I know I need help, and this sounds promising, but I don't have enough info to be sure. Thanks so much for the support!
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Old 04-24-2007, 01:44 PM   #20  
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Lightbulb re: Band erosion - Pam

Pam: I don't know how far away you are from this doctor - Trace Curry - but look him up - he is based in Cinncinati, Ohio. He has his own website - and he is extremely good with questions - even from people who are not his patients. He is also a moderator on obesityhelp.com - which is another site for good info similar to this wonderful site (3FC). It sounds like you need more information before you go in for another round here.

Good luck!!!
Stacey
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Old 04-24-2007, 02:00 PM   #21  
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Thanks for the info! I'm about 4 hours away from cincinnati. It's much closer than Tijuana! I'll definitely look him up. I feel that Obesityhelp.com isn't as well organized as this and the lapbandtalk.com forums. I get a little frustrated when researching at obesityhelp sometimes.
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Old 04-25-2007, 02:44 AM   #22  
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Question Anybody here have stomach problems BEFORE their surgery???

Hey gals,

Great info here. I live only 45 minutes outside of Cincinnati!

Anyways I had a question, not sure if this is the right place to ask it or not......

But have any of you had stomach problems (nausea, GERD, ulcers, etc, etc) and then they went away AFTER your surgery?

I too have been contemplating WLS and I've had stomach problems since I was a teenager, so I was just wondering if anybody here that did have stomach problems before surgery, if they were relieved or gone afterwards?

Mind you that isn't the only reason I'm considering the surgery. I am obese and have health issues (diabetes, pcos, high cholesterol) plus a bad back and the weight surely does not help.

We've had several people from work get the surgery, mostly the Gastric Bypass, most have had phenomenal success and are doing great, there are a few who did have problems and are still having problems from their surgeries, but I know with any surgery, everybody is different.

Well anyways, thanks for at least reading my post, even if you don't have an answer for me.

Good Luck to you all!

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Old 04-25-2007, 05:13 PM   #23  
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I've heard of patients having both responses, some have a relief from gerd/ulcers etc.. others have new onset of them after surgery. You're right that everyone reacts differently. The exact reason medical treatments are so varied. You and I could have the exact same illness, from the exact same bug, spread to us from the same person and the medicine that heals you could kill me. You'd have to decide after doing a lot of research, whether the risk of having those things worsen or stay the same are as bad as the risk of staying obese and all that brings... Good Luck to you in your journey!
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Old 04-25-2007, 05:14 PM   #24  
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btw: I did email a list of questions to Trace Curry MD yesterday. When he responds I'll post them to share the info.
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Old 05-08-2007, 08:58 AM   #25  
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Well, it's been a while since I attempted to contact Dr. Curry via his contact us link, but he didn't reply. Perhaps since he doesn't actually perform the gastric sleeve yet, he can't answer questions regarding how long one would need to stay in the hospital, or in his area after surgery, nor how much it will cost, or how long one might need to be off work. Guess I'll just have to keep searching.
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Old 05-11-2007, 12:07 PM   #26  
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Podsky to answer your initial questions, I could eat more than an ounce of food, more like 1/4 to 1/2 cup at a time. Drinking with meals is discouraged because it will flush your food out of the pouch, allowing more intake, which defeats the purpose.

Some foods just are not band friendly and can stick for a while which is VERY uncomfortable, but those foods vary by person, it's trial and error. Banded folks have to be careful not to 'eat around' the band with liquid calories, like cream soups, shakes, ice creams...

I couldn't eat breads, cakes, brownies or pasta, but could do well with rice. Others could eat pasta but not rice. Eggs can be tricky, I couldn't, some could... raw veggies are difficult for a lot of folks, dry meats are too. With the band you learn to eat every couple of hours since the intake is small amounts.

Going to the LapbandTalk.com community could answer a lot of questions about the good and bad of bands. I experienced some of both with it, eventually losing it to erosion. I loved mine and lost a lot of weight with it until it eroded, some folks have slips, there are some frustrated folks who dont lose with it, and others who do great with it, have gotten to goal and are still doing well. Like all things medical, it varies from one person to the next. One just has to decide if the risks are as bad or worse than the current level of health.
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