A WORD OF ENCOURAGMENT....PLEASE

[lapbandmom]

Ok folks, here goes. My daughter had surgery in April 2008. She has the Realize band which is 9 cc. She is currenlty at 8.2 (or so they say) in her band. SHE HAS NOT REACHED HER SWEET SPOT and she is not losing weight as a matter of fact she gained some back from her initial loss right after surgery. She has had 7 fills. At one point they took a small amount out and then put it back the next month so I'm not counting that one. We did struggle to get to the doc in the months of December and January as he is three hours away and the Ohio winter was kinda bad. I emailed and begged his to go against his policy of no more than one fill a month and get aggressive here. He agreed to have his nurse practitioner take it out under floro next week and see whats there and go from there. She knows the band is there but its not helping her fill up much at all. COULD SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME. MY DAUGHTER JUST CANT BE THE ONE THAT THIS DOESNT WORK FOR. Has anyone else had this minimual weight loss and the long lenth of time to reach the sweet spot>

[Lindsay]

I would say find a new fill doctor/location.

I'm assuming you're not getting it done by x-ray fluoroscope?

From everything I've read, doing it under x-ray can save you TONS Of time finding that sweet spot as they can physically SEE what's going on and how the band is sitting.

What does her diet look like? (caloric intake - protein/carbs/fats)

And is she exercising regularly?

[lapbandmom]

Well we cant really find a new doctor. I paid for a package deal...the surgery and two years of fills. That payment is difficult enough for me.

I doubt if she is counting carbs, proteins, calories religiously. She is always mindful of it though. Exercise is minimal I'd say but as weird as it may sound, as she gained weight she put on tons of weight in her breasts. We are unable to find a sports bra that fits and it makes it awkward and embarrassing. I think she just have to take walking until some of that weight comes off.

I had read that some of the docs in Mexico are super aggressive with the fills and get instant sweet spot under floro. He doesnt do them that way. At the advice of others, I begged and he told me to bring her back next Wednesday which would only be 2 weeks since her last fill. He is not going to be there but the nurse practioner is going to talk it all out under floro and check to see whats there and then refill her under floro. Any suggestions as to what I should ask for etc? I've had it with this. My daughter has a weight problem and apparently was never able to control her eating so if this is just going to turn into being on the adkins diet and see if that works, then I'm telling you it wont. If she was able to do this on her own, we wouldn't have went 13,000 in debt for this thing.

[lapbandmom]

AS A MATTER OF FACT, I'M GOING TO EMAIL THE NURSE PRACTICIONER RIGHT NOW AND GIVE HER THE HEADS UP SO THAT SHE IS CLEAR ON EXACTLY WHAT WE WANT DONE AT OUR VISIT. Apparently they don't see many people who take this large amout of fluid to reach the sweet spot. I have heard that the first generation Realize band can be stubbord and that some people who are small inside (if you know what I mean) take more to get to the sweet spot. DOES THIS SOUND LIKE A GOOD IDEA?

[AngelaAnn]

AS A MATTER OF FACT, I'M GOING TO EMAIL THE NURSE PRACTICIONER RIGHT NOW AND GIVE HER THE HEADS UP SO THAT SHE IS CLEAR ON EXACTLY WHAT WE WANT DONE AT OUR VISIT. Apparently they don't see many people who take this large amout of fluid to reach the sweet spot. I have heard that the first generation Realize band can be stubbord and that some people who are small inside (if you know what I mean) take more to get to the sweet spot. DOES THIS SOUND LIKE A GOOD IDEA?

Hi,

I'm no expert and these are just my opinions/suggestions and I had my band done in Mexico and it only holds 4.0 cc's and have 3.0cc's (after 3 fills since Oct.08) in it now and some days I have restriction and others I don't but I would definitely get your daughter's next fill done under flouroscopy as they can not only visualize the band and port, but also see if she stretched her pouch out. If the pouch is stretched, it is only fixable with more surgery. She also might have a leak somewhere in the port area. Anyway you do it, flouroscopy is the way to go--if nothing else to make sure everything is okay.

The reason the fill doctor haven't been agressive with fills I think is because when fills are done blind, they can't visualize how fast or slow the liquid/food is going through the stoma and so err on the side of caution with small fills.

[lapbandmom]

Thanks. They did take an xray the other day (flouroscope) and took a picture and the nurse showed it to the doc and he said it looked "OK" so I assume the pouch looked ok. I wonder why they just don't do the flouro everytime? They did her first fill that way and then that was it. this last one the nurse gave her .2 and then took across the hall and did the x-ray. but I want them to close it off and then back a litttle out using the flouro. It would have to be my child that was the odd ball and take forever to get to the magic spot. I'm going nuts. I see people who look totally great after 11 or 12 months and shes gotten nowhere. I guess I need to look at the big picture. This is a lifetime committment. the past year has flown by. I suppose if she would get to her sweet spot now then who knows if 12 months maybe she'll meet her goal.

[Lindsay]

...i'm so sorry you're having such issues finding this sweet spot we all talk about.

how old is your daughter?

it sounds like she's going through some hormonal changes, too - the increase of breast size.

Has she had a blood panel done lately? (they'd check for potassium levels, thyroid, ect)

Just keep in mind that breasts are fat.

That indication alone tells us that she's definitely increasing her bodyfat percentage.

Is your daughter motivated, or as discouraged as you are?

I would get her into the right mind set to get one thing in gear at a time.

Suggest she starts journaling her food - this is a GREAT habit to get into - and makes one far more 'aware' of what they're really eating.

And exercising.

This is a BIG thing. We need to get her metabolism going, which won't happen with diet alone.

With increasing her activity level, not only will that help with possible sluggish hormonal levels, but the more lean body mass (muscle) she has, the quicker her metabolism will function naturally. If her caloric intake is too low, she may have reached a physical plateau, which will cause a stall, and a possible increase of body weight. When your body thinks you're starving it, it will hang onto weight/body fat.

Just keep in mind that diet is at LEAST 85% of your (her) results.

the other percents is exercise.

I'm not too sure about the fills ---

It's so unfortunate you can't depend on the 'professionals' you thought you could trust.

sigh/

I hope someone has some better insight for you! xo

[Lindsay]

I wonder why they just don't do the flouro everytime?

Because it costs 'them' more!!!

Can you REQUEST it every single time???

[lapbandmom]

I love this Doc and his office staff are great but you know what I'm paying the bill and they work for me and I guess its time for me to starting telling them what WE want.

[Lindsay]

I doubt if she is counting carbs, proteins, calories religiously. She is always mindful of it though. Exercise is minimal I'd say but as weird as it may sound, as she gained weight she put on tons of weight in her breasts. We are unable to find a sports bra that fits and it makes it awkward and embarrassing. I think she just have to take walking until some of that weight comes off.

aww, i totally know how she (and you, as a mom) feels.

it's such an awkward and disheartening time when you feel like nothing fits your body.

just hang in there - she will find her footing, it just may take awhile.

Has your daughter tried that Under Armour sports bra?

I know someone who wears them, and she's a 38DDD ... Google it, and see if you can track them down!!

They don't leave that too-tight-around mark, and are apparently amazingly comfortable.

Another great company that caters to ALL sizes:

http://www.barenecessities.com

[AngelaAnn]

Thanks. They did take an xray the other day (flouroscope) and took a picture and the nurse showed it to the doc and he said it looked "OK" so I assume the pouch looked ok. I wonder why they just don't do the flouro everytime? They did her first fill that way and then that was it. this last one the nurse gave her .2 and then took across the hall and did the x-ray. but I want them to close it off and then back a litttle out using the flouro. It would have to be my child that was the odd ball and take forever to get to the magic spot. I'm going nuts. I see people who look totally great after 11 or 12 months and shes gotten nowhere. I guess I need to look at the big picture. This is a lifetime committment. the past year has flown by. I suppose if she would get to her sweet spot now then who knows if 12 months maybe she'll meet her goal.

A question for you--every time she has a fill do they pull out all of the saline before the give her more? Is all of the previous fills saline still there? If it's not, then she might have a port leak which probably wasn't on the xray the showed the doctor. Did your daughter actually drink the barium and see how fast/slow the liquid was going down? Showing an xray doesn't seem the same as actually seeing the barium swallow in process which is more like a "video."

Also, to make you feel better, I still have a problem with the "head hunger" and sugar so, I've only lost 35 pounds since I had the band put in--in August of 2008.

[Smiley]

Before pulling out all of the liquid I would ask them to do a barium swallow to see how quickly the liquid is moving thru the band and if the pouch is stretched. The reason I say this is that my doctor is hesitant to pull out all of the liquid for fear it might cause the band to slip. Although, if there is not as much in the band as they think then it could mean there is a leak, or they have been missing the port if the fills have not been done under flouro, which in my book gives you grounds to request an extension on your contract or some kind of compensation. Regardless, you definitely need to express your needs/wants to the doctor/nurse practitioner.

Here are the steps my doctor goes thru at my fills.

1. Lay down and get the needle stuck in.

2. Stand up and do a barium swallow - yes the needle is sticking out of my belly. This allows him to see if everything looks okay and it allows him to see how fast the liquid is going thru.

3. Add some saline.

4. Do a barium swallow again. At the point where the liquid goes thru the band he looks for a shape that he refers to as a hummingbird. If we see this shape he stops, if not he adds a little more saline until we do get to that shape.

Once I started volunteering to stand up for the fill so that we could do the barium swallow periodically I started getting much better fills. Prior to that a nurse practitioner did the barium swallow first and then the fill under flouro and that was it, which meant she never new how fast things went thru the band. We kept thinking I was close to my sweet spot when I really wasn't, so the small fills because she thought I was close kind of had me losing the weight loss game, but not the weight.

Thank you for being your daughter's advocate and let us know how the fill goes.

[mona-camille]

I too, am a highly unusual case. I was banded a year ago and have 10 cc's in my 10 cc VG band. I have lost 40 pounds. I have been very discouraged this past year and decided to back to the OCC to find out what the problem was. They told me I was doing everything right, I just happen to be one of those people who is going to be slow at losing weight. Starting menopause is a huge factor for me also.

I don't really have any good advice for you but just wanted you to know that there are some others out there in the same situation. I do not regret my decision to get the band one bit because 40 pounds is still 40 pounds. Plus, I DO feel a WHOLE lot better than ever so I am still happy with it. Disappointed with the weight loss amount but it isn't going to stop me from trying. I have started seeing a nutritionist and I think that is going to be a huge help. Could be what your daughter needs too.