Question:
what experience have you had with lapband?

i am going to have lapband surgery and would like to know step by step labband experience before during and after. and how much weight loss and amount of time    — ihatebeingfat11 (posted on August 15, 2008)

August 15, 2008
I would also like to know this. Next week I go for my Pulmonary Dr. to see how the test came out. I am in month 2 of pre-surgery. Thank you.
   — Pattie076

August 15, 2008
I think it's different for everyone. I am 10 months out and down 110 pounds. I still deal with hunger issues but that's just something you have to learn to conquer. I think pre and post op care is VITAL..it's not just about the surgery. I see my surgeon and my dieticians every month and I also attend support groups. I decided I wasn't going to be on the low end of the losing scale with this surgery before I ever had it, I have worked as hard as I can to get where I am. .I work out every day and I make good food choices as much as possible. Good luck on your journey.
   — HoosierDoula

August 15, 2008
hello, i had lapband 7.5 weeks ago. if you have done well in the past with surgery, this should be a breeze. first couple of weeks are intimidating. i was healing from surgery, so i felt tired, i exercised daily, walking was best for me. after the first 7-10 day you are allowed to add food gradually back into your daily diet. within six weeks i have lost 34 lbs. you still get hungry, it just takes less to fill your tummy. my brain is another matter. my head is hungry when my tummy is full. you really have to follow your doctors instruction to the tee. any time i decide to veer off and do my own thing i pay for it. usually by pbing. most un-pleasant. wishing you all the best.........
   — stevenzak

August 15, 2008
Hey there, As of August 3rd, I am 2 years post LapBand and I love my band. I call it "Oscar" because it is round and sometimes it is grouchy like Oscar the grouch! I was a self pay so I had no hoops to jump through and because I was a big girl (402# with a BMI of 71), there was no worry about qualifying. I saw the surgeon and had the surgery 3 weeks later.... cash. Once seeing the doc, I began a low carb diet, 3 days before surgery I began clear liquids to shrink down my liver and get myself used to limited calories. I had the LapBand as well as an open hernia repair of an abdominal hernia the size of a cantaloupe so I was pretty miserable at first. I initially wondered why I had paid someone cash to make me feel so bad? I did what I was told, took my pain meds, coughed and deep breathed with my incentive spirometer, walked as much as possible both outdoors and on my treadmill to get rid of gas and to keep from getting pneumonia and every day got a little bit better. On day 7 I saw my surgeon and cried like a baby when I had only lost 6 pounds. I thought I had done a lot of suffering to have only lost 6 pounds. He reminded me that I had just survived 2 MAJOR surgeries and my body was holding on to a lot of fluids from the trauma. I thought with the starvation and massive diarrhea from the antibiotics and clear liquids, I must have lost a lot more than that. I was pretty weak and tired and had to keep reminding myself that I had done the right thing to save my life. I advanced from clear liquids to full liquids to mushy foods to a full diet of low carb, high protein foods. I was off of all meds for diabetes within 1 week and off hypertension meds within 1 month. I followed the rules of lots of water, 3 meals, no snacks, 70% protein first then 30% veggies at meals, no drinking with meals and I exercised as much as I could. Initially, I could only do 2 minutes on the treadmill as I was sooo out of shape. Each day I did a little more. I eventually started going back to the gym and swimming which I love... it doesn't hurt, I don't sweat and it feels like fun and not exercise to me. The water is very healing to me. I began taking extreme care of myself by making myself my #1 priority which I had never done in my life. Being an RN, a wife, and a mother of 3, I had always been a "giver" and put myself last. I began to meditate and to constantly tell myself positive things and intentially focused on the positive in all areas of my life. In 6 months I lost 100#, in 9 months I lost 135#. It was amazing!!! I cannot stress enough though that the weight did not fall off, it was hard work, everyday little by little. The emotional work in dealing with my addiction and my relationship with food took me to some pretty dark places I had avoided for a long time. I chose to face them head on to heal myself emotionally as well as physically. In year 2, my father became critically ill and in and out of the hospital multiple times over several months which required me to travel to NY (I live in Jax, FL) and I began focusing on and taking care of everyone else but myself like I had in the past and completely relapsed into the disease of obesity and gained back 60#. I never thought I would do that after all of that hard work, but I did. I skipped appointments and sunk into a very deep depression which required a trip to a psychiatrist and some antidepressants. It took about 8 months to get myself turned around and back in the right frame of mind to get back to work on myself. It was so hard to contemplate having to lose the same weight I had lost before, but I knew I had to do it. I'm happy to say that I have lost most of that weight and am well on my way to my weight loss goals. It no longer matters how long it takes to get there, it only matters that I do get there and I will. I have made the commitment to myself and my family to eat according to my WLS rules and exercise some every day. I think the most important thing I can say to a newbie would be to not underestimate how much work it is going to be with the LapBand. We only have restriction, we do not have malabsorption so we have to make a life long commitment to diet and exercise and it is work, the weight does not fall off. Post op care, fills, support groups and family support are all essential. Put yourself first and begin positive self talk now. Start exercising and eating low carb asap to put yourself in the best shape you can as soon as you can. Also, if you hit a bump in the road after surgery, call your surgeon and get in for a fill and deal with it as soon as possible. When you're struggling, don't avoid the doctor and scales... that is when you need them the most. Cut yourself some slack, forgive yourself and keep moving forward with a positive attitude. If I eat protein and veggies, I am not hungry. If I eat carbs, I am hungry all of the time and crave more so I avoid them. Once I get a taste of them.. I just want more. Also, eat until you are satisfied, not full. Satiety is what you should be aiming for. It takes a while and several fills usually to get enough restriction... the "sweet spot" where you can eat very little and be completely satisfied. Don't expect it immediately. They have to do fills in small amounts as your stoma will swell after and needs time to heal so it is done in stages. Diet, exercise, vitamins and a positive attitude with support. I wish you the best of luck, Dawn Vickers, RN, BLC, CLC
   — DawnVic

August 15, 2008
I was prepared for gastric bypass but I didn't get it because of my cardiologist said no but yes to lap band. I had lap band 4-16-08. I started the lowfat diet a month before I had lap band and lost 8 pounds. I wasn't required to lose weight before the surgery (different surgeons require different things) The morning of the 16th of April, I checked into the hospital and my surgery time was scheduled around 10:30a.m. and I walked into the surgery suite, claimed on the table and talked with the doctor that was going to put me to sleep and my doctor Dr. Watson Roye, and Dr. King the sleep doctor, and Dr. King said he was going to give me something to relax and I woke up on the operating table to hear them talking about the best way to get me off the table and I looked at them and said I would help (they didn't realize I was awake) and then I went into the recovery room (hospital rule that I have to stay at least one hour) went to my room at 12:19a.m. they took my vitals and gave me water and protein drink, and up to walk the halls, I went. They wouldn't let me go home until I used the bathroom, I finally went and was home by 4:15p.m. I was wide eyed from the time the surgery was over until around 9p.m I was asked if I needed pain medications but never needed it. What little discomfort I had was tolerable. Never did take pain medication. The next day, I could have drove but I was just too tired and the next day I was on the go and have been ever since. I am down 45 pounds and lots of inches (tomorrow will be 4 months) I have had two fills. You do get hungry but most of mine is head hunger and not hunger hunger. My surgeon told me that there is a big difference between the two. I have the hunger hunger down but the head hunger, I am working on. I do go to support groups and I have a support system in place. Dawn is right, put yourself first, then help everyone else. I was to involved with helping everyone else that I didn't take the time for me and if I don't take care of me, then I can't help anyone else. My friends and some family doesn't like that commitment that I have made to myself but it doesn't matter right now. My diabetes, I was on insulin 4 times a day and right after the surgery I was put back on oral medications and my blood pressure medicine has been cut in half. I have degenerate joint disease, two knee replacements, a metal rod and screws in my back and now I can do water aerobics 3-4 times a week (which, I just love) My BMI was 50.2 and now down to 43.5. I have done so well, I am proud of myself. I was just geared up to know what I have to do and I just do it. Oh, there is another thing, just don't go by the scales, there are a lot of victories that are not governed by the scales, like being able to pull the seat up in your car, crossing you legs, getting in clothes that you haven't been able to wear (my case) for a few years, being able to walk a long distance, the wide size shoes you wear is now medium or making my primary care physician happy, not only him but myself. My 17 year old grandson hadn't seen me in about a month and he told me that I was looking good..that meant the world to me. I haven't been down this much weight since he was born. Good Luck, Diane
   — dyates2948

August 16, 2008
I had my band placed April 19,2007. Have lost 98 lbs & still going. Initally it can be frustratiing as you are healing, have no fill and are not losing weight, or if s very slowly. It is important during this time to "learn the rules" of small bites, chewing to mush, no "gooey stuff" like bread, pasta. no drinking with meals etc. There is a forum specifically for lap band you cango to, read old messages, ask your questions, gets lots of info.
   — Donna O.

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