Alexandra

Welcome to the boards!! How cool that your doctor told you to look online for some support groups! That's a great suggestion, of course, and I wish my doctor had made it. :cool: I think most people find these places on their own initiative.

Linda, I think BandAid is right. It's been several weeks since your banding so you should be able to handle solid food by now, but you may be like so many others who are never really able to tolerate bread products. These kinds of foods can swell once they've gone down, so a bite that seems one size in your mouth can get larger as it goes down your esophagus. Please be careful; vomiting is something you want to avoid. If you know it always happens with biscuits, then just avoid biscuits. Waiting between bites is also a very good idea. Good luck with your fill!!

I agree with Shelly. Time and warm liquid may help, but if you are really having trouble getting anything down it's probably time for a small unfill. PBing can irritate your tissues, and they can't get better until whatever it is gets unstuck for real.

Carmen, CONGRATULATIONS! That's a great date, because you'll have plenty of time to heal up before the holidays. You're on your WWAAAYYY!!!!! :cool: :D

Barb, what is the reason your doctor gives for being unwilling to give you a fill? I mean, you should let your 10/6 fill be for several weeks, I think, to see if it does tighten up as has been known to happen. But beyond that you shouldn't be getting resistance from the doctor! I get the same thing, but I've never actually spoken to my doctor about it. I will be getting my first fill on Thursday and will try to get to the bottom of the surgeons' reluctance then. It makes absolutely no sense to me. I can understand their wanting to let us adjust to a fill, see how we react to it, etc., but several weeks should be enough for that unless there's something I don't know. As for how this August bandster is doing, much like you Barb, and you aussieoakey. But I'm hoping Thursday's fill will change the picture a bit. Claraluz, you give me hope that a fill will help, even if it doesn't feel "tight" all the time. Every single opportunity to eat less is what counts.

Thanks for posting, Mary. It may be that we're all on the same page but using different terminology. After all, the band is supposed to make us think twice before putting anything in our mouths. At least, that's what I'm banking on! When I think back to the immediate post-op period, I remember that eating had to be done very cautiously to avoid, well, pain. Eating cautiously, I lost weight. And eating cautiously was all that it took to avoid pain. So that's what had me worried, Mary, your comment that you had pain all the time. I'm SO glad to hear that's not the case. And remember, if you can eat soft foods you should be able to eat that bite of tuna sandwich, as long as you turn it into a "soft food" in your mouth before swallowing.

I'm normally very anti-litigation, and quick to find potential explanations for errors that people make. But it does seem highly irresponsible, even neglectful, for medical staff to discount the probability that a foreign object implanted around one's stomach is the cause of serious and ongoing gastrointestinal distress. I mean, for crying out loud, the band should have been removed at that point with no delay. I don't care if they had no experience with the band. It's not a lifesaving device like a pacemaker; removing it should be the obvious course of action if it's causing problems. It's possible, of course, that the patient vigorously resisted any such suggestion. If that's the case, we should all take it under advisement that there are FAR worse things than not having a band.

Shelly, wow, you look great!! Isn't it amazing how photos show what we can't see in the mirror? I've had a few pix taken recently but I'm scared to look at them. Mello, please remember that the surgery choice is YOURS, not your doctor's. If you are more comfortable with the band don't let anyone sway you. That said, let me throw in my 2 cents: of COURSE he guarantees weight loss with the RNY; your body will not absorb what you put into it. The side effects of that can be nasty, and the surgery is extremely risky from the start anyway. And what does your doctor say about a long-term guarantee? I'll be he doesn't even try to give you one. It's entirely possible to regain your lost weight a few years post-op, and then you have no recourse. The band remains adjustable long-term, so if your weight loss stalls or stops you can do something about it. And at MUCH less risk to your overall health. Just my unbaised opinion.

(We really should start another thread about this but I didn't want to do it without Mary's permission. So I apologize for the thread hijack.) Mary, why are you having pain every time you eat? This is NOT the way the band is supposed to work. Are you eating too fast or taking too-large bites? What was it that you heard that made you think this is going to be permanent? Pain can be an indicator that there is something really wrong, too. I suggest that if you can't readily identify the source or cause of your pain PLEASE call your doctor.

Thanks for posting this, Shelly. It is indeed sobering. It's really important to emphasize that it is NOT normal to be vomiting all the time and to be in pain, or to be unable to keep anything down. If anyone should have these symptoms, GET THEM CHECKED OUT. A casual prescription for antacids is not necessarily the right treatment for a banded patient with reflux, and it is up to US to know that. Thanks again for posting. This is very important reading.

That's really interesting, Ginger and Donali. I didn't know that some people are released without any x-ray or swallow testing. The variations among pre- and post-op care are amazing!

Megan, I'll be thinking about you on Wednesday. That's so great that your family is supportive! It really helps when people aren't always making disparaging comments. Good luck!! :P

Everyone has to have some sort of swallow test before being released from the hospital after surgery. That's how they know the band was placed correctly and that you can take in nutrients. In my case they didn't use barium, but some other sort of radio-opaque Fluid that tasted absolutely vile. From what I hear, barium will be a pleasant change. I'm hoping that's what will be used at my fill later this week, which will be done under fluoroscopy.

How much is it worth to you, Bright? What can I say? Your son has exquisite taste. OK. I'll shut up now. :straight Frodo Lives! Shhhhhh....

Well, drinking lots of Water quickly right before a meal will, of course, make you feel full. The gist of the article seems to be that there is some point in timing it, measuring it, obsessing over it, and I just don't think that's so. Many people attest that drinking lots of water in the hour leading up to a meal makes for a smaller meal. Whether that will work for you -- and whether the sensation of fullness will last at all -- is just something you'll have to try. Water moves through the stoma faster than anything else, of course, so it can't be relied upon to fill your pouch at all. The concept of water loading with regard to one's pouch would seem counterintuitive for that reason. The advice I've always been given, through years of being told to drink lots of water for various reasons, is to drink it continuously throughout the day. I see no reason to change that just because I have a band.

Marsha, I can so relate to what you're going through. From the time I decided the band was what I needed to the time it was a reality, 13 long months passed. I'm not really sorry, though, because WLS is a huge step and this gave me time to really think it through. Now I'm 100% on board and ready to make it work. And now, 13 months doesn't seem like a very long time after all.

Hi Denise, I think if you just try searching the groups for "mexicanbandsters" it will turn up. Good luck!

Hi Stregamama! Welcome to Bandland!

This is an interesting read, but please, everyone, be aware that it was written about GASTRIC BYPASS and the pouch that results from such surgery. Banding is a very different procedure and the descriptions of pouch size and time frame simply do not apply.

I think you'll get several different answers to this, but here's mine: I had no hospital stay. Surgery was done on an outpatient basis, and I was home by 2:00 p.m. the same day. I think I was in surgery at 9:00 a.m. or so. Most people either have outpatient or stay one night at most. I have four incisions, two of which are really more like puncture wounds than incisions. The other two are small, perhaps 1 inch and 2 inches long respectively. I'm 6 weeks out and they're still visible but fading more every day.

Hi Ginger! Congratulations on your surgery...welcome to Bandlandia!! The pain you're feeling is related to the surgery, the gas they used to inflate your abdomen. It will pass, but it sometimes takes a while. Movement can really help, and burp as much as you can. I don't know what a binder is--so I don't know how long you should keep it on. If it's something to do with your incisions, I'll share my doctor's post-op instructions were to let them be exposed to air as soon as possible. Even band-aids were not really recommended. Best wishes for a continued quick recuperation!

Hi Karen! It's nice to "meet" you. Congratulations on your weight loss and new life!! I'll bet your two very active children are thrilled to bits that you're losing weight and getting more active too. That's what I'm most looking forward to myself!

Hi Dawn, The "gas" pains that people refer to are not the kind of gas pains you may be thinking of. It's a whole different sort of feeling--a tightness in the chest and abdomen that is a result of the operation itself. People feel it in different ways but no matter what it passes in a few days. I had some discomfort but it definitely wasn't as bad as I was afraid of. Little, sharpish twinges here and there occasionally. Moving around helps to dissipate the residual gas and, as I said, it's usually all gone within a few days. Good luck with your insurance!!

Hi Wendy! I think that's a really good idea, calling the office. Ask to talk with Dawn, the nurse practitioner, because she's the one I saw at my last checkup. I didn't see the doctor at all! Dawn asked me a few questions about my restriction and what I'm eating, and made a couple of notes about how I'm "struggling" not to overeat. She said Maria does the actual scheduling and that she (Maria) would call me. It was on the phone with her that I had the conversation referenced above, so an actual appointment may not be necessary. If it is, maybe they can move your 11/20 appointment up a little so you can get in on the November fill date. I did hear from another Bertha patient on the NJ Bandsters list that it was indeed Dr. Bertha himself who did the fill. That surprises me, but it's not a bad thing at all. Maybe I'll have a chance to chat with Dr. Abkin, finally!

Babs, that's so cool!! What a miracle this little band of silicone is. Yahoooo!!!