One year out! (Warning - Very Long Post!)

Happy Bandiversary! What a ride the last 12 months have been! I actually started my journey in Late-Summer of 2006. My Wife, Judy and I were at a tent sale and by the time we got back to the car I was completely winded. I had only walked about two blocks. I was feeling very close to my own mortality. As we sat there in the car waiting on the A/C to kick in, I mentioned that I had been thinking about WLS, and had been researching the Lap-Band system. Without getting into details, Judy was in the middle of some pretty serious health issues as well that led to two pretty major surgeries. Therefore was not very keen on the idea of me going through surgery, and even less keen on having a foreign body (The Lap Band System) installed inside me. Even at that, was very supportive of whatever I thought I needed to do to re-gain control of my life. My Sister had recently had RNY and was very satisfied with her surgeon so I made a series of phone calls to get the name and phone number of his office. Before we pulled out of that parking space I had made the appointment for the Initial Consultation at Illinois Bariatric Clinic in Clinton, IL. I was shocked that the soonest I could get in was 2 months out!             The Initial Consult pretty much went exactly as I envisioned, the system worked exactly as I had thought. It was at this point I found out about all of the hoops I was going to have to jump through to get my Insurance Carrier to ‘Buy-In’. Again, I will spare you the details, but the Insurance Carrier needed confirmation that it was a Medical Emergency, and that I was under a Doctors Monitored Care for Weight Loss before they would approve the procedure. Although I was impatient, this actually took far less time than most. I had been on the Weigh****chers plan for about a year, and was going to the Doctor every 3 months for Blood Pressure, GERD, and Weight Check Ups. Usually a health carrier wants to see Monthly check ups so I was concerned. Initially I was denied my claim, but after only one appeal signed by my Surgeon, my Family  Doctor, and the Clinical Psychologist I was approved by my Primary Health Carrier, but still denied by my Secondary (Spouses Insurance Carrier). The funny part of this part of the journey is that I was approved while I was on Vacation on Dauphin Island, AL. Actually the message was left on our home phone the day we left, December 22^nd. I spent most of our vacation kicking the sand, wondering how long I was going to be in the appeal stage before I could convince the Insurance companies that this was a Life-or-Death emergency! Imagine my excitement when we got home on December 30^th and I played that message! I made the decision that since I was only being faced with MOOP from my carrier, that I was moving forward and scheduled the Surgery for the first available date. I had to wait until the Surgeons office returned from their Holiday Shutdown (What seemed like an eternity) on January 2, 2007 and called their office as soon as they opened to set the date for a Preoperative Consultation on 17Jan07, With a Surgery Date of Tuesday, 30Jan07!! Wahoo! The Pre-Surgical consult went exactly as I had researched, I was put on an all liquid diet for the 13 days prior to surgery in order to among other things, shrink the liver a bit to make a Laparoscopic approach more feasible.             The date of Surgery arrived and with much anticipation as well as a bit of apprehension (After All, I was about to commit to a permanent lifestyle change!!) Judy drove me to Dr. John Warner Hospital in Clinton where I was checked in at 6:30am. After this I was in the middle of the tornado of activity that culminated in being wheeled into the Surgical Suite at 8:00am on the dot! The next moment of recollection I have is laying in the recovery bed, back in my room. I looked at the clock and it was 10:38am. Only 2 ½ hours later and I was all done… I felt my side and confirmed that I had dressings where the Port was to be installed, gently smiled and fell back to sleep.             I woke back up about 1:00 in the afternoon and found Judy and Sidney Rohrsheib (My Surgeon) discussing how well the surgery had went. I joined into this conversation with much enthusiasm. The Doc asked if I had used the been out of Bed yet? I answered no, but If he would kindly step aside, I was about to make a bee-line for the restroom. When I sat up, I found out I had a new Buddy… The IV stand. I grabbed my buddy by the hand and we went to the restroom. When I came back to the recovery room, the Doc was gone (Bummer, I wanted to ask when I was going home). Judy told me to sit on the Bed the nurse was on the way to un-hook the IV. Within minutes the Nurse appeared, unhooked the IV, and told me to get dressed, I had been released!! WoW!! I checked in at 6:30am, Went into Surgery at 8:00am, and was checked out and on my way home at 1:30pm… 7 hours elapsed time! Still on mostly liquids for 14 more days, but now was allowed a small ‘Lean Cuisine’ type dinner for the evening meal. I was also cleared to return to work 05Feb07, less than a week later… AWESOME!!             All went well until I had my first Band Filling on 11Mar07. What an experience!! They asked if I wanted to be numbed up first… being a typical Mid-West male, I scoffed and said… No… Let’s just get this over with. It seems that I still had a bit of a fluid pouch around the port so it was a bit difficult to locate… this made my decision to forgo the numbing an even worse! After 5 attempts (Read that Stabs!) they called the surgeon in. He then went in with a Big Bore Needles and drained the fluid (6^th Stab) and finally hit the port (Lucky number 7) and placed 4cc’s of Saline Solution in the band. Even swallowing Water was a challenge. I was cautioned about using the band properly… no drinks before, during or 30 minutes after a meal… quit when I first feel satisfied, and when I hit a plateau to decrease calories, and increase activities to push through (Do NOT go back to the  all liquid phase to jump start… Weight loss is easy on liquids, but it is a real challenge to get proper nutrition) I returned 6 weeks later and had the band tightened up to 6cc’s (I have a 10cc band so that is quite a bit of restriction!) All was going fine until Early August… Weight loss slowed down, I was not following the rules as well I as I should be (Drinking with meals had returned), and I was returning to bad eating choices. I had been so focused on loosing that first 100# (Which I passed through in July) that I had failed to Goal Set beyond. Also with the weight loss, a previous health issue was manifesting itself with a vengeance… tinnitus.  Tinnitus has many different forms, mine is Pulsatile Tinnitus, meaning I hear my heartbeat 24 hours a day in my right ear. I made an appointment with an ENTA (Ear Nose Throat and Allergies) Clinic. Upon my initial visit, they were far more concerned with a mass they felt in my throat that the Tinnitus. I was scheduled for an MRI which lead to a Fine Needle Biopsy (OK, THAT word scared the Hell out of me!!) and was told that the results were inconclusive… I was scheduled for an exploratory Partial Thyroidectomy. They would open my up, and remove the right side… slice, dice and examine. If it was questionable or worse, remove the left side. I guess as soon as the surgeon saw it, he elected to just remove it all and be done with it as it was all mass… Results came back benign.. Whew!! All through this, the ENTA Doctor did not want me getting Band Adjustments and changing my nutrition intake. The concern being that he was monitoring several things in my bloodstream to replace the Thyroid hormones with Synthetic replacements and wanted to be sure he was not chasing me changing my metabolism. All through this he made two failed attempts to correct the Tinnitus. He removed my right Occipital Artery, as it seemed to be the likely culprit, then I went in for a Cranial Angioplasty which revealed no abnormalities. Bottom Line, learn to live with it. I was finally released and allowed to pursue a band fill on 6Dec07. When they checked the band, it had leaked down to 4.3 cc’s (That would explain why I was feeling very little restriction, I thought it was just because they had removed the Thyroid!). They pumped me back up to 6.5cc’s and sent me on my way. Weight loss picked back up dramatically. My Tool was once again functioning normally. I had my head screwed back on securely, and was once again following the rules! I am 30# from my Doctors goal of 225#, and 60# from my goal of 195# and have been losing an average of 2# per week, pretty close to the 5% number that DXe quoted previously. I am right on track and doing well. I started this journey at an official weight of 389# with a BMI of 57.44. I was actually MUCH heavier than this prior to going in for my Initial Consult, but had never officially weighed in as I did not have access to scales that went past 400#. I just know I went from size 62 pants fitting tight to 60’s fitting about right and wearing 4XX Shirts. Currently I am at 254.8 with a BMI of 37.62. I wear 46 Pants, and XL Shirts I no longer have GERD, Mobility has increased to levels that I cannot even remember having had before, Life is good, and I no longer have that feeling that my Mortality is in peril. I can walk briskly (4 MPH) on a treadmill for 2 ½ miles with no ill effects. And I am looking forward to many years of enjoying my family.             I went through a period in this last year where my OH account was compromised and I had someone posting obscenities using my profile in various other forums which led me to make my profile private. Also I had folks from other forums poking their nose where it doesn’t belong. For these reasons it will continue to be private (Only those on my Friends List have access), but it really doesn’t matter as I no longer update it for these same reasons. I am grateful to those whom I have befriended with the ‘Men’s Locker Room’, you all know who you are. I really appreciate all of the advice, and support you have shown me.             Well guys, that is about it… I really did not set out to write the great American Novel, but I am very proud of my results in the last year. I want others to know what could happen for them. I by no means consider my results ‘Average’ for a Bandster… I actually more closely resemble the results of an RNY patient, but with a little luck and a lot of perseverance, these could be your results a year from now if you are considering a Lap-Band. I have had a world of support from my Life’s Partner, Wife, Best Friend, and Soul Mate – Judy! Without your support and encouragement, I could never even had a chance to make it this far… You’re the BEST! I know you are now considering the ‘Band for yourself, and I fully support whatever decision you make! Good luck with YOUR initial consult on Monday, February 4,  2008. 05Oct06          389.0   -           Initial Consult with Illinois Bariatric Clinic 14Jan07           385.8   -           3.2# loss since Initial Consult (Approval Date) 17Jan07           383.4   -           Pre-Op Consult - 2.4# loss (Start Liquid Diet) 21Jan07           371.2   -           12.2# loss since Pre-Op Consult 28Jan07           362.8   -           8.4# Loss since last Sunday 30Jan07           359.6   -           Lap Banding Day 3.2# Loss since last I had Lost 29.4# prior to Lap Banding! 04Feb07          355.2   -           4.4# Loss since surgery date 08Feb07          352.8   -           Post-Op Consult - 2.4# loss since Sunday 11Feb07          349.6   -           3.2# Loss since Post-Op Consult 18Feb07          350.2   -           0.6# GAIN since last Sunday 25Feb07          344.4   -           5.8# Loss since last Sunday 04Mar07          338.4   -           6.0# Loss since last Sunday 08Mar07         First Fill          Band is at 4cc’s 11Mar07          333.8   -           4.6# Loss since last Sunday 18Mar07          327.6   -           6.2# Loss since last Sunday 25Mar07          326.0   -           1.6# Loss since last Sunday 01Apr07          323.0   -           3.0# Loss since last Sunday 08Apr07          321.0   -           2.0# Loss since last Sunday 15Apr07          314.4   -           6.6# Loss since last Sunday 16Apr07         Second Fill     Band is now at 6cc’s 22Apr07          311.8   -           2.6# Loss since last Sunday 29Apr07          306.8   -           5.0# Loss since last Sunday 06May07         303.0   -           3.8# Loss since last Sunday 13May07         301.8   -           1.2# Loss since last Sunday 20May07         301.2   -           0.6# Loss since last Sunday 27May07         299.4   -           1.8# Loss since last Sunday 03Jun07           295.4   -           4.0# Loss since last Sunday 10Jun07           294.6   -           0.8# Loss since last Sunday 17Jun07           293.4   -           1.2# Loss since last Sunday 24Jun07           291.2   -           2.2# Loss since last Sunday 01Jul07            291.0   -           0.2# Loss since last Sunday 08Jul07            289.2   -           1.8# Loss since last Sunday 15Jul07            288.4   -           0.8# Loss since last Sunday 22Jul07            287.8   -           0.6# Loss since last Sunday 29Jul07            287.0   -           0.8# Loss since last Sunday 05Aug07         286.8   -           0.2# Loss since last Sunday 12Aug07         286.6   -           0.2# Loss since last Sunday 19Aug07         286.4   -           0.2# Loss since last Sunday 26Aug07         286.2   -           0.2# Loss since last Sunday 02Sep07          282.8   -           3.4# Loss since last Sunday 09Sep07          282.4   -           0.4# Loss since last Sunday 16Sep07          282.2   -           0.2# Loss since last Sunday 23Sep07          282.0   -           0.2# Loss since last Sunday 30Sep07          280.8   -           1.2# Loss since last Sunday 07Oct07          279.2   -           1.6# Loss since last Sunday 14Oct07          278.6   -           0.6# Loss since last Sunday 21Oct07          277.6   -           1.0# Loss since last Sunday 28Oct07          274.8   -           2.8# Loss since last Sunday 04Nov07         274.0   -           0.8# Loss since last Sunday 11Nov07         273.6   -           0.4# Loss since last Sunday 18Nov07         273.2   -           0.4# Loss since last Sunday 25Nov07         272.8   -           0.4# Loss since last Sunday 02Dec07          272.4   -           0.4# Loss since last Sunday 06Dec07          Third Fill        Band is now at 6.25cc’s 09Dec07          271.4   -           1.0# Loss since last Sunday 16Dec07          269.2   -           2.2# Loss since last Sunday 23Dec07          268.4   -           0.8# Loss since last Sunday 30Dec07          267.2   -           1.2# Loss since last Sunday 06Jan08           264.0   -           3.2# Loss since last Sunday 13Jan08           260.8   -           3.2# Loss since last Sunday 20Jan08           259.4   -           1.4# Loss since last Sunday 27Jan08           255.4   -           4.0# Loss since last Sunday 30Jan08           254.8   -           0.6# Loss since last Sunday 134.2# Loss overall 104.8# Loss since surgery 17.6#   Loss since last band fill Starting BMI = 57.44 Current BMI = 37.62

 

wow! lol You should thank me for reading thatBoth eme nad my wife had rny. It has in many way brought us closer together. Good luck to your wife also. Congradulations on the success! Have a great day, Derrick

Hey oddley enough I was just wondering about you and how you were doing.  Keep up the good work , and SIMPER FI      Nick 

SF Dad, You know if there's one thing I can’t tolerate, It's a wordy message!   Actually, when I saw- "(Warning - Very Long Post!)" I thought,- "Here’s another of those - ‘bragging about their New Length’ Threads!" A year already? Seems like just yesterday…… Congratulations for staying with it! Keep it Up! Best Wishes- Dx

Thank you for writing a detailed account of your year.  It can be helpful for many of the men *****ad it and are considering getting the Lap Band.  Also, many of us have some form of Thyroid problem but most of us just take meds for it.  Having it removed must have been scary. I hope you are able to continue posting on this forum.  If you've had a problem with prior respondents, you may want to contact OH and see about getting a new user name.  I don't think you'd have to bother saying what your old one was.  That way, you can almost anonymously get in on our discussions.  You can bring up the facts of your case without getting slammed for your history.  And, I'd suggest that you just post here and possibly on a specialty forum--stay away from the Main Forum if you are encountering problems there. I remember you from when you were a pre-op patient to when you first had your surgery.  It's great to hear from you again. 

You are making great progress.  I am having some personal issues slowing me down for a while but you journey is a inspiration to the fact it still can happen. Thanks for the warning, and thanks for the post. Eugene

Thanks for the time and energy taken to post your inspirational story.  I enjoyed every bit of it and have been motivated to stay on track because of it.  Keep up the great work and please continue to post updates.

Great Read! Congratulations on your regaining control of your health. The best of luck to your wife, as well. Now it's your turn to help your wife realize her dream of a healthier life. Ronnie 

great job SF, plus a good read for the newbies. i knew i couldn't get enough info when i started. i always wanted to know about the behind scene. congrats.....carbonblob