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Topic: RE: closed topic
I agree with you about the bypass. I lived with it for 28 years and it was overall a bad experience; there are so many problems associated with it; ie dumping, ulsers, nutrititional defeciencies etc. The difficulty of living with a bypass coupled with the failure to keep the weight off was what led me to look into a revision and ended up with me getting a revision to DS.
From your post, I get the impression you think the DS is a bypass similar to RNY; which of course it is not.
But like I said in my earlier post, the purpose was just to make sure you were aware of the other options and what living with them all would be like.
Best regards,
Kerry
From your post, I get the impression you think the DS is a bypass similar to RNY; which of course it is not.
But like I said in my earlier post, the purpose was just to make sure you were aware of the other options and what living with them all would be like.
Best regards,
Kerry
Topic: RE: Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians (RMAP) Patients
Wow Sean, I will miss you on the RMAP forum!! But 90% of the time, I come on here at oh.com and visit the Utah and RNY board for my support post op. I very rarely go on RMAP anymore. You had a lot of insightful things to say when I'd ask a question and were very informative on the RMAP site, they are stupid for banning you because of Carly. 
on them!!
on them!! Hit goal weight of 140 at 13 months out from RNY!! 130 pounds GONE! 
Topic: RE: closed topic
Just wondering why you want a Lap Band?
From reading the revision board it sure sounds like Lap Bands are a nightmare. I sure hope you have researched the other options like RNY & DS. My personal experience is that I had gastric bypass WLS back in 1980 and at that time I didn't really look into any other options; I just took my doctors word that it was the thing for me. The staple line broke down during the first year and I almost bled to death; you can read the whole story if you want to on my profile.
Anyway, the point of this post is just to encourage you to really research the other options if you haven't done so yet and make sure the Lap Band is what's right for you and what you really want. Like I said, the revision board is full of failed Lap Banders looking to get a revision, so that's a good place to lurk; I would also read the DS and RNY boards to see how those people are living with their WLS post op. Remember, you will be living with your decision for a very long time.
Best regards,
Kerry
From reading the revision board it sure sounds like Lap Bands are a nightmare. I sure hope you have researched the other options like RNY & DS. My personal experience is that I had gastric bypass WLS back in 1980 and at that time I didn't really look into any other options; I just took my doctors word that it was the thing for me. The staple line broke down during the first year and I almost bled to death; you can read the whole story if you want to on my profile.
Anyway, the point of this post is just to encourage you to really research the other options if you haven't done so yet and make sure the Lap Band is what's right for you and what you really want. Like I said, the revision board is full of failed Lap Banders looking to get a revision, so that's a good place to lurk; I would also read the DS and RNY boards to see how those people are living with their WLS post op. Remember, you will be living with your decision for a very long time.
Best regards,
Kerry
Topic: RE: Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians (RMAP) Patients
LOL. So I heard from a friend that Carly (Dr. Smith's nurse over at Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians) address the uproar by her decision to ban me by quoting the terms and conditions of the message board over there. She claims that I violated these by adding a post that was derogatory, mean, slanderous, etc. I think she needs to look up the definitions of these terms. First off, all I did was relay a TRUE story about how she treated me when I tried to call and see if Dr. Smith wanted to have me stop by to see my progress. I suggested that RMAP could improve in the customer service area and I stated that there was no reason to hide behind a bunch of made up things to justify the $500 educational support fee. Instead I stated that the fee was for the educational support you receive before and after surgery and if you make use of that it is well worth it. Plus I stated RMAP requires it because they feel it helps with your long term success and that they are well within their rights to structure the program as they see fit.
I don't really mind that Carly banned me. My weight loss journey is done and I'm doing exceptionally well. But there were a lot of people on that message board who emailed me and persuaded me to go back and help support them through their journeys. Banning someone for a personal vendetta as Carly has done, especially when it's someone who is one of your center's biggest success stories, has got to be the worst decision ever. But.. Carly is in her 20s, she's good looking and thinks that her looks means she doesn't have to be nice. I'm not the only one who has noticed this.
But I will say that despite Carly, I love RMAP and especially Dr. Sherman Smith. If I had this to do all over again, there isn't another surgeon out there who I'd have do it.
Sean
I don't really mind that Carly banned me. My weight loss journey is done and I'm doing exceptionally well. But there were a lot of people on that message board who emailed me and persuaded me to go back and help support them through their journeys. Banning someone for a personal vendetta as Carly has done, especially when it's someone who is one of your center's biggest success stories, has got to be the worst decision ever. But.. Carly is in her 20s, she's good looking and thinks that her looks means she doesn't have to be nice. I'm not the only one who has noticed this.
But I will say that despite Carly, I love RMAP and especially Dr. Sherman Smith. If I had this to do all over again, there isn't another surgeon out there who I'd have do it.
Sean
Topic: RE: Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians (RMAP) Patients
I'm having fun writing on my blog. I hope everyone will join me there. www.seanstransformation.blogspot.com
If you'd like to post something on my blog, let me know and I'll add you as an author. If you want to comment on any posts on the blog, just click on "comment" after the post.
Ultimately we may need to move it to a forum with a bit different structure but for now it's a fun way for us all to keep in contact and continue to share our journeys. My contact information is there as well. As many of you have experienced and all of you should know, I've dropped 250 lbs with the gastric bypass over the past 21 months. Along the way I've gathered a wealth of knowledge and I am seeking merely to offer my support and experiences to help others. In addition, I love the feeling of family that WLS patients can have together after sharing such personal hardships surrounding the obesity battle. Come join in, you don't have to be a RMAP to share in the fun.
Sean
If you'd like to post something on my blog, let me know and I'll add you as an author. If you want to comment on any posts on the blog, just click on "comment" after the post.
Ultimately we may need to move it to a forum with a bit different structure but for now it's a fun way for us all to keep in contact and continue to share our journeys. My contact information is there as well. As many of you have experienced and all of you should know, I've dropped 250 lbs with the gastric bypass over the past 21 months. Along the way I've gathered a wealth of knowledge and I am seeking merely to offer my support and experiences to help others. In addition, I love the feeling of family that WLS patients can have together after sharing such personal hardships surrounding the obesity battle. Come join in, you don't have to be a RMAP to share in the fun.
Sean
Topic: RE: Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians (RMAP) Patients
As I went through my emails tonight (yes, it was a moment of boredom), I found where I had copied and pasted some of the advice I've give over the past months to my fellow gastric bypass patients. I have posted the advice on my blog at www.seanstransformation.blogspot.com
I hope you'll come and check it out. You can also talk to me here. As I get deeper into my emails (it'll have to wait for another moment of boredom), I'll put more of those types of posts on my blog. I hope you'll join me and post your comments, etc. I wish blogspot was a bit more flexible in how I can set it up for interaction between everyone. But then I guess I could start my own site but for now I'll settle for a little blog.
Hope to talk to you soon.
Sean
I hope you'll come and check it out. You can also talk to me here. As I get deeper into my emails (it'll have to wait for another moment of boredom), I'll put more of those types of posts on my blog. I hope you'll join me and post your comments, etc. I wish blogspot was a bit more flexible in how I can set it up for interaction between everyone. But then I guess I could start my own site but for now I'll settle for a little blog.
Hope to talk to you soon.
Sean
Topic: RE: Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians (RMAP) Patients
So today I hit 223.8 lbs. After starting at 474.1 lbs and setting a pre-surgery goal of 225 lbs and not having anyone believe I could make it, I'm pretty excited. At this point I'm not trying to lose weight anymore but we'll see where it will stop.
Of course I really don't dump. I don't know if that's a blessing or a curse. If I eat too much sugar, I do get a bit of a rapid heart beat and depending on what I ate, I can feel icky but nothing major. So of course what do I do to celebrate my milestone? You guess it. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Oh well, can't do anything about it now... just have to reset my determination to not do that anymore. And that's what it's all about. Not beating yourself up when you make a mistake but learning and growing and doing better the next time. I'm convinced that beating yourself up over making a mistake just makes you feel bad about yourself and perpetuates a cycle of self-defeating behavior. You beat yourself up, then you feel bad about yourself, so you give up because you're going to fail anyway, and then you eat more crap. Allow yourself to be human and make mistakes. Don't justify making them but when you do, move on and determine to do better.
Anyway, that's the rant for today. I'm going to try to add to this area from time to time so I hope you'll come back and read. I'm also going to start adding all of this to my blog at www.seanstransformation.com. There are pictures there showing my transformation. There are a lot of huge success stories with gastric bypass. We all feared in the beginning that this would be yet another weight loss attempt that we would fail at. It doesn't have to be. For me this journey was made possible by the surgery -- because it gave me the control over my life that I never had before. Anyway, I hope this area and especially my blog might help you a little bit on your journey. If you'd like to contact me with questions, you can find my contact information in my blog.
Sean
Of course I really don't dump. I don't know if that's a blessing or a curse. If I eat too much sugar, I do get a bit of a rapid heart beat and depending on what I ate, I can feel icky but nothing major. So of course what do I do to celebrate my milestone? You guess it. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Oh well, can't do anything about it now... just have to reset my determination to not do that anymore. And that's what it's all about. Not beating yourself up when you make a mistake but learning and growing and doing better the next time. I'm convinced that beating yourself up over making a mistake just makes you feel bad about yourself and perpetuates a cycle of self-defeating behavior. You beat yourself up, then you feel bad about yourself, so you give up because you're going to fail anyway, and then you eat more crap. Allow yourself to be human and make mistakes. Don't justify making them but when you do, move on and determine to do better.
Anyway, that's the rant for today. I'm going to try to add to this area from time to time so I hope you'll come back and read. I'm also going to start adding all of this to my blog at www.seanstransformation.com. There are pictures there showing my transformation. There are a lot of huge success stories with gastric bypass. We all feared in the beginning that this would be yet another weight loss attempt that we would fail at. It doesn't have to be. For me this journey was made possible by the surgery -- because it gave me the control over my life that I never had before. Anyway, I hope this area and especially my blog might help you a little bit on your journey. If you'd like to contact me with questions, you can find my contact information in my blog.
Sean
Topic: RE: Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians (RMAP) Patients
I hope everyone from RMAP will visit my blog at www.seanstransformation.blogspot.com and read about what happened that got me banned from the support board over at RMAP. Many patients have gotten in touch with me over this and seem to feel as I do that RMAP really needs to improve their customer service skills. The surgeons are top notch but the support staff needs to improve their courtesy and professionalism.
Keep visiting my blog everyone and thanks for all the kind words.
Sean
Keep visiting my blog everyone and thanks for all the kind words.
Sean
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