ivansmom

I had my band removed by the same Doctor who put it in - Dr. Ortiz in Tijuana. The removal was $3,500 and it included my hotel for 2 days and a ride back to the airport.

Last year, I was having trouble with my band and was sitting in Dr. Ortiz's waiting room and a few well-meaning people asked me if I was there to get a band. I told them the truth, that I had already lost 100 lbs and was there to be unbanded due to complications. I still needed to lose 40 pounds at that point.

I called the number on the site. I think it was 384-thin, and I spoke with their office rep, so it was definitely not a wrong number. They finally called me on Friday. In my line of work, I call people back with 4 hours, not 4 days, so that was disappointing. I am hopeful though, because they were helpful when they finally did call.

I don't have any personal experience with these two doctors. I called their office this monday to request a consultation, since their website says to call for a consultation or to reserve a spot at their seminar. I have already had been banded and unbanded and did not want to go to the seminar. So, I said to the "operator" in their call center that I wanted to schedule a consultation. They said they would have to take my number and call me back, because they can't just schedule a consultation. That was Monday and as of Wednesday night, I have not gotten a call back.

Karey, I am curious about your slippages. How are you doing now? What do you know about the sleeve? I had a slippage last year and had my band removed. I am sad, because I gained back a lot of the weight that I lost - from 206 back up to 242. I am trying to get the courage up to try again. I miss my smaller self, even though I still had about 45 pounds I wanted to lose.

I tried for 2 years to get approved through Kaiser. I finally gave up and paid for it myself in Mexico. I work for an insurance company, but I think that health insurance companies really are dishonest.

I had my band removed after a little over two years. I did not want to, but it had slipped and was way too tight. It was honestly too tight from the beginning and I did not follow up like I should have. I had it removed about 2 weeks ago and I am sad. I feel like I am starting over and am afraid I will regain the weight. I have a knot of scar tissue about the size of a ping pong ball, but otherwise, no problems so far.

Thanks for taking a look at my post. I had my surgery about 16 months ago and since then have not lost a lot of weight. I have had problems with the band feeling too tight, even when it was not filled. I was basically on liquids for the first 3-4 months or so, with occasional attempts at solids. Not very successful. I was not really losing weight, so I went back to my doctor, Dr. Ortiz. They gave me a small fill. I don't remember what it was. After that, the problem got even worse. The funny thing is, when the weather is warm, I seem to be able to eat more. Since it has gotten cold though, even some liquids don't want to go down. I would really like to be a lapband success story. Have any of you had weather-related tightening of the band? Right now I have no fill at all and even with that, it is hard to eat and sometimes hard to drink. When I can eat/drink, I tend to go for Chili and frosties from Wendys.

I went to him for an emergency un-fill while I was in Denver on a business trip. He is possibly one of the nicest doctors I have ever met. Very polite and he put me at ease. He is an ex-Air Force guy and truly a gentleman. Good luck with your band.

Kudos to you, Dr. C, for suggesting that. Every little bit helps. Thank you also for the time and effort you spend responding to all of our questions.

That's funny! Maybe she thinks she DOES have an apple bottom. I do, which is both good and bad, but I would never wear anything that draws that much attention to my, uh, bottom.

I recommend the Slim-Fast Low Carb Chocolate flavor. 20g protein, very low carbs, no gas, no nasty texture, etc. I actually LIKE these. I drink one for breakfast while I am driving to work and it keeps me satisfied until lunchtime. Make sure you are getting the low-carb version. I am not fond of the other varieties.