Thanks for the info kvalera.

Why in heavens name would anyone think TLC is responsible for Allen's health care. I was born and raised in Chicago. Love the Bears. They went to the Super Bowl last year and lost. Should I blame the station that aired the game for the Bears loss? It's just as stupid a scenario. Yes, the station makes money, that's what they are there for. But they are not responsible for what is happening on the shows being aired. If it is a channel like TLC, of course they would show things that are in good taste, because it's that kind of a channel. But that's all the responsiblity they have. Take care.

I think the show is produced well and I enjoy getting to know the patients and their stories before and after their surgeries.

I think it would be interesting to follow the patients home for glimpses of their recovery processes; to see how well they comply with the diets, taking their supplements etc.

Usually morbid obese people don't become that way by doing things that are expected of them. I'm curious how these bad habits that they have works against them after the surgical intervention.

I weigh 360 down from 402 pounds. I'm currently on Weight Watchers and have lost 40 lbs by being off and on the program. I know from my experience and others that are morbidly obese we tend to do well for awhile then old habits take over again.

How does this work for the patients the doctors have operated on?

I absolutely love the show. As an RN, it is really refreshing to see "human" doctors that sincerely care about their patients. I do not see this surgery being done on 60 yr + patients. Why not? Too risky? I thought Medicare actually covered this surgery?

I have to live vicariously through all the "winners" on your show because I live in Wyoming where, to give you an idea, we just got the state's first Starbuck's. How long do you think it will be before we would have a top notch bariatric team? Not in my lifetime unfortunately... thanks again for a great service to people and a great show.

quote:

I think it would be interesting to follow the patients home for glimpses of their recovery processes; to see how well they comply with the diets, taking their supplements etc.

Usually morbid obese people don't become that way by doing things that are expected of them. I'm curious how these bad habits that they have works against them after the surgical intervention.

pkwit,
it would be interesting to learn all that info on individual cases and hear about the "real world" after the show.
do you think that would really happen on tv?
it could be that the shows are "staged and edited" so there wouldn't be a way to know the real truth.

I would first like to thank you for doing this. I would have never made the dicision to change my life if it weren't for Garth & Robert. I would like to see more on Lap Band. I would say I can count on one hand the stories about lap band patients. The lap band is a fabulous alternative to the Gastric bypass with alot less complications. I recently had the Lap band surgery one week ago. I was very nervous. However, a repeat of Big Medicine with the African American woman that had the LB Surgery was on with Garth Doing the surgery. I watched the show with such interest and kept replaying some of the scenes I wanted to watch again. It helped with releasing most of my fears. So I would love to see more especially with fills and what they entail. Thanks!

This is to Darryl Silver & & Stephen David,

I really LOVE this show!!! I need to lose about 60 lbs and this show really inspires me!! In fact I am losing weight now because of it!! Ive lost 17 lbs in 3 wks so far. (diet & exercise)

I LOVE the Father & Son doctors! They are so GREAT!!

Please keep this show going. Everyone I know LOVES it tooooo!

You guys are all so AMAZING!!! Keep up the wonderful work you do, to make this show happen!

Love, Denise, family, friends and co-workers!!!

quote:

Originally posted by goldaa:
Thank you all for watching the show!

We are prepping season two as we speak and we would love to know what your opinions are about season one so far.

We want to make season two even better.

We look forward to your thoughts.

Regards,

Darryl Silver & Stephen David
Executive Producers
BIG Medicine

The show is awesome. I love it. I just had my RNY WLS last monday the 20th and watching this show while I was going through all the pre op testing and such really helped me. Please keep it going. Follow up on season one patients would be great.

I absolutely love this show!!! I had the lap band surgery on 08-15, even though I have been following through with the surgery since 01-06. The show really helped me with preparing for my surgery. My family and I went to florida for vacation back in June and I made sure that I got to watch the program while I was there. I think that the Doctor's are great...I would have loved for the Dr Davis's to have done my surgery, but I had a great Surgeon in Atlanta GA to perform mine. (Dr. Paul Macik) I can't wait for season 2!!!

I would love to chat w/anyone in regards to had having the lap band surgery.

The reason I'm here tonight is that BM isn't on! Okay, so after reading the messages I now realize that the season is over. I wish they were showing repeats because I missed some of the earlier episodes.

Having said that, Big Medicine is an outstanding show! It educates people about obesity, eating disorders, weight loss techniques, exercise and surgery. It also provides a strong incentive (at least for me) to keep my weight down. You can watch the show and recognize some of the bad eating habits that obese people have. That helps a lot.

The doctors have great personalities and good interaction with patients which helps reduce the anxieties related to surgery.

I look forward to the second season. My only disappointment with the first season was that it introduced a lot of patients and their situations, but spent very little following up their progress. I feel very strongly that this must be a major focus of season 2. We need to see the successes (and failures, if any) of the patients. This will be critical for people who are considering have bariatric surgery. It also gives the viewers a little bit of closure to see the patients who have met their weight loss goals.

Overall, I'd have to say this is one of my favorite TV programs! Great work, everyone!

I absolutely *LOVE* Big Medicine and am very sad that it is over for the season. PLEASE do not make us wait until next summer to see it again! When does it start up?

Thank you for asking us! I love the show! I recently had lap-band surgery and it has been great for myself, friends and family to see what happens for patients. I enjoy seeing the surgical views.

I wondered if you could do some afters of Lap-Band patients and what made their weightloss successful... we often see the surgery and then the after - would love to hear what they did in between to be successful!

Please keep up the great work, I look forward to your show every week! Thank you!!

A number of people have posted that they wish they would have done more follow up of some of the patients. It takes a while for the weight loss to be visible. I'm not sure how long ago some of these segments were done, but say they were done in the spring (I'm guessing), that wasn't that long ago so the patients may not be showing visible signs of weight loss. So there may not have been much to show yet. It has been posted that in Season 2 they will be going back to some of the patients to show their progress.

I wondered if this could branch out into other practices. I really enjoy the byplay between Dr. Garth and his dad, but I might like to see different surgeons and their approaches to this as well. Some, for example, have embraced the VSG, either as a revision for failed Lap Band patients, or as a standalone procedure. I'd like to know their reasons, and maybe compare them to Dr. Garth's concerns about the procedure. I'd like to see how different centers approach things, too, as not all of them do it the same way.

And I'd like to see more long-term followup as well, just to see how people are eating and living months and years after the surgery.

And yes, some discussion of the insurance piece of this mess would be helpful. So many insurances are starting to embrace WLS. I think when you start figuring out the long-term cost/benefit of WLS, and realize that MO patients are VERY unlikely to lose that extra weight any other way, and look at the money these insurers will have to fork out when their comorbidities start taking a toll, we're going to find that in the long run, WLS is preventative, and cost effective.

Hello everyone. First, I have to say that the show is a big hit with me. I particularly got attached to Marc and his struggles with his weight and was really angry when the insurance company gave him such a hard time when asking for approval. I just have to ask, are these people who work for the insurance companies blind, deaf, and dumb? Who would sentence a man to death like they were trying to do? I'm glad the doctor got through to them and he finally got approved. Remember insurance companies, keep it up and people will quit buying their policies from you! So there, enough about that.

Secondly, my husband had gastric bypass surgery on 8/6 and is doing pretty well. We watched the show to become better educated about the procedure and what to expect. It was very informative and helped a lot, but it needs to show more pre-op and post-op things like what they can eat, when they can begin exercising and how much food they will be able to eat. It would be great, as others have said, to see both the good and bad with regard to WLS and to see how the patients are doing later down the road. All in all, I love the show and it has inspired me and my husband to take better care of ourselves and become more active.

With regard to the therapist, she does need to be more sympathetic towards the patients and quit saying, no no no no so much. It gets old. I'm with the person who said earlier, these people have serious eating disorders and need help to combat them. If the surgery helps them to realize this, then it's worth undergoing the surgery. She needs to be more helpful in determining what got them in the shape they are in and help them deal with that after surgery. I guarantee that once they experience dumping symdrome like my husband has, their mind will change about the food they put in their mouth!

With regards to educating the family and friends who are taking care of the patients who have been shown, I say get them away from them because if they hang around, they will end up killing them. And those of you who are taking care of someone morbidly obese, don't be afraid to tell them "no" you cannot have that because I love you that much. If they are bedridden, what's going to happen? Are they going to get angry? Don't worry, this too shall pass and they will thank you later after the weight comes off and they are able to get back to living their lives to the fullest. It angers me that people don't have the gall to say no to someone they love. It's the same principle as handing a suicidal person a loaded gun and leaving the room. Shame on them. That's all for now. I'm really looking forward to next season and seeing how Marc and the other patients are doing!

I LOVE THE SHOW! Completely bummed when it didn't air on Monday 8/27/07. (which is exactly why I went searching ONLINE for a reason)

I had a lapband installed 4/26/07, so I am REALLY interested in seeing more BANDsters, but I think it is nice to see more and more WLS shows to help people understand the differences between all the surguries.. Today's RNY is NOT the same procedure of the past..... I also like the blend of PS after weight loss has been achieved. The dynamic of father/son, oldschool/new school is a GREAT concept!

On the shows that feature lapband cases, it always stops after the first fill. I think the non banded public are very confused about our FILL schedule and what it FEELS like when we have restriction, the fact that it can be UNfilled if we get pregnant or have another surgery. I would love to see this further explained.

I would also like to see patient updates on the website, and webisodes! THANKS FOR ASKING!

Love the show. Glad it will be back next season. I'm glad you will follow up on patients. But I would also like you to preserve their privacy. Their full identity should not be exploited. These people are kind enough to let you in their lives. Be respectful of theirs. I also would like to see Mary Jo's progress with the emotional cards and the progress of people emotionally with WLS. This has been a tough road for me personally. Excepting my new body. You can become Bulemic, depressed and nervous because the fat is no longer there to shield you from life.

The show has provided me with a great deal of needed information. I have a 20-year-old who is going through a several-month pre-op program so our insurance will pay for the surgery.

I would find it interesting to see patients in formal pre-op programs. I'd also enjoying checking in periodically with some of the patients to see how they have progressed.

The show walks a good balance between entertainment and information. I've been encouraged by the compassionate approach of the producers.

I love the show!!! cant wait til season 2 comes
hopefully we will see some of the "then and now"
on some of the bigger patients.

My wife and I love to watch the show. She has had a lap band and I would like one as well, but we switched insurance, so I need to go on a diet for 6 months before I can qualify. Met Dr. Robert a few months ago and he seems really down to earth and hope to make this a reality soon.

I watched your program 9-3-07 on TLC , it was titled I eat over 33,000 calories a day or something like that. I was very disappointed that no update was given on this repeat show. Did these people get help ? How are they now ? Do you forward letters ? I would like to write to the two ladies to encourage them. thank you, beth jackson

This show has turned my life around. I call Mondays FAT MONDAY nights.. Nobody can talk to me after 9:00. I ate myself sick for the last three years. Long story but trust me.. I gained 80 pounds. I saw that these people lost 100 pounds sometimes BEFORE the surgery and it really got me motivated. I have started to lose weight just by watching them. I actually was afraid I was going to end up like that. I have started a low fat diet and excercising. since June 18th i have lost about 33 pounds. I credit a great deal to this show. It would be great if you do follow ups on these patients.I miss it right now it was my security blanket. When will the new season start?
Thanks.. GREAT SHOW!