I got clearance from my surgeon to start working out again...yay!!!  He said I can do everything but bench pressing.  WHAT???  Gee, I'm gonna miss bench pressing!

Hi, and welcome to our little corner of OH.  Wow, sounds like you have been through a lot with your band and your health.  I may not understand all of it but I know a lot about PCOS.  When I first started gaining weight, I gained over a hundred pounds in one year.  It took years for them to come up with a diagnosis, they didn't even know what PCOS was back then, they just said I had an enlarged ovary.  My endocrinologist said the way to control the symptoms was with low carb diet and exercise.  They then found out that women with PCOS have insulin resistance and are prone to type two diabetes.  The way that I lost 131 pounds was on the Atkins diet and exercise, I've maintained my weight loss for four years now.  I eat natural whole foods and still have a hard time getting in all of the required amount of vegetables and water but it's definitely worth the effort.  All of my labwork has been consistently normal, I recently had an EKG and everything was normal.

It sounds to me like you are starting to get a handle on your situation healthwise, I would say that if you aren't comfortable with having an RNY at this time, don't have it.  I have a friend who has PCOS and she has an RNY.  She still has the symptoms, has not lost all of the weight after four years and basically eats the low carb way that I do.  She struggles not to gain, same as I do only she can't eat as much as I do.  Just some food for thought.

Let me know if you have any questions,

Mary         

 My proud today:

I had to take out of an ATM to pay my baby sitter. I had to take out $60, but was paying the sitter $50. I needed to break a twenty but didn't want to spend a whole bunch. Dunkin donuts was closest. I stood in line and was debating the 'best' option to spend the least $. Where I live, calories are posted on the display menu's so there is no denying what your eating. So I stood there knowing I didn't want to spend calories to make change...so I decided to walk out and see if the bank directly behind me would make change w/o me being a customer. Low & behold they did!!

So my proud today was turning around!!

Hello all,

What a supportive group you are! 

I've been lurking for some time on various boards, and wanted to introduce myself/tell my story.

I've had a LapBand for 7 years.  I had it revised (to a LapBand) 2 years ago after a major slippage.  For a while now, the port has been causing me pain.  I have a surgery date of May 14 to remove the Band.  Finally.  It has been a battle with my insurance company, but it looks set now.  :)

My surgeon thinks I'm nuts.  He wants to revise me to RNY.  I have been back and forth about this....but I think I have to get my other health issues sorted before I do something like that.  I was just diagnosed with diabetes, I've got PCOS, and we're figuring out if/what kind of autoimmune disease I have.  I am also having ferritin/EPO shots to build my iron and hemoglobin levels because they're so low that no surgeon will operate right now.  I have had 2 Drs tell me that the iron deficiency might be caused by the Band - the hematologist and the endocrinologist.  My surgeon says that's ridiculous, it's just not the case.  I actually like my surgeon, despite his strong bias for RNY.  But when I go through the classes with 8 other patients who are ready for RNY....and these classes are held biweekly.....it does make me wonder about the 'bariatric mill' phenomenon.

I have never lost weight with the Band.  In fact, I have no restriction at all.  I can easily polish off a 12 ounce ribeye with fixin's if I choose.  My surgeon tells me I'll gain weight if I have the Band out without revising to RNY.  I don't believe him.  I *HAVE* lost weight once during this journey, and that was when I was using hCG coupled with a VLCD.  I got down to 165 and felt great.  Of course I had more to lose, but that was a great place to be.  Unfortuantely I gained it all back.  I'm back at 210, which is close to where I started!

I am now on a few different medications, one of which is a diabetes drug that helps curb appetite as well.  In the past week I have lost about 5 pounds by eating low carb, high protein.  Im happy with those results.  In fact, when I look at the successful weight loss patients as they maintain their losses, the common theme I notice is precisely that: low carbs, high protein.  So I'm wondering if this is the right decision: to have the problematic Band removed no mater how nuts my surgeon things I am, and to continue working at making lifestyle changes.  These lifestyle changes are the same ones I'd have to make with or without RNY in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle and weight loss. 

Sorry for the brain dump - I just wanted to get it all out there for any feedback, comments, or just a 'hey, nice to meet ya!' response.  :)  I am inspired by those of you posting about your non-surgical losses and they way you're working every day to maintain and improve your health.  In the long run, whether you lose the weight with WLS or without, the changes we make are the same, aren't they? 

A

thanks everyone!!