MCOBandita

I live in Casselberry and will be going to Fill Centers USA in Tampa to get my fills. You might want to also check with Keith Kim's office in Celebration for fills.

Hi Silry, My stomach was gnawing and rumbling and so I went ahead and incorporated the sippable yogurt yesterday. Dr. Miranda said that this could be started as early as day 4. I did start feeling hungry again yesterday, but with three sips of the yogurt I felt full - AMAZING! Tomorrow will be the start of when I can do the Protein Shake and I am thankful for it! :biggrin1:

Whew! Thanks! I am trying to follow the post-op to a "T" so I was worried!

I work for a great and typically very progressive employer so I was very surprised when our UHC policy specifically excluded any weight loss surgeries. I was thinking about offering to purchase the rider for my company to avoid paying for my surgery 100% out of pocket. I ended up deciding to go Mexico to have it done by Dr. Ortiz. The total will be $8,500 which includes everything except the airfare. Good luck to you!

Pre-Band on my 30th Birthday a few weeks ago!

The countdown has begun! I am leaving on Monday and am having my surgery Tuesday 2/20! Can someone add me to the main list? I am getting more excited and nervous as the date gets closer! Looking forward to just getting it done already!

Puddin, After reading about your dating woes I have to recommend a couple of books to you that have helped me a lot. 1) He's Just Not That Into You - by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo 2) Be Honest, You're Not That Into Him Either: Raise Your Standards and Reach for the Love You Deserve - by Ian Kerner 3) Mars and Venus on a Date - by John Gray 4) The Five Love Languages for Singles - by Gary Chapman 5) How to Avoid Marrying a Jerk - by John Van Epp (I am reading now.) With the exception of The Five Love Languages I have been able to get all of these through my library. Best of luck with your continued success!

Wow, Julie. You are almost at goal! CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR TREMENDOUS SUCCESS!!!:whoo:

Some of my favorite "guaranteed weight loss" ideas include: Please note my sarcasm! * You can eat anything in moderation! (What's moderation?!?) * Eat lettuce; it burns more calories to eat it than it is. (I ate it until I vomited one day.) * Use a food journal - it makes you accountable and you just stop eating. (Nope, just made me more depressed.) * Eat five times a day to keep your metabolism fired up. (Great, another excuse to eat more!) * Exercise more than what you consume and you will lose the weight. (Sounds easy enough, but I do have to work for a living and can't be in a gym 6 hours a day, 7 days a week.) * Sit in front of a mirror as you eat. (Um yeah, no comment for this one.)

Mary, go ahead and call them, why postpone your health and happiness any longer? You can do it! :hug:

Wow, Jacqui! What you said just really hit the nail on the head with me. I thought I had dealt with my reservations, but reading your comments made me realize that I still had those exact feelings/thoughts floating around in the back of my mind. :wow2: You made me feel so much better. Thanks for your post!

I have been obsessed with researching everything I can about the band and people's post-op experiences. I think I have over-researched and am now feeling very discouraged about the band. Tremendous Gas Pains, PBing, Ports Flipping, Need for Revision Surgery, Slippage, Erosion, Unable to Eat Certain Normal Foods EVER (grapes, rice, bread, salads, leafy greens, red meat, chicken, etc., etc., etc.), Not Losing Weight (particularly after the first 18 months) - I am freaking out. I want the band to help me not have my life so food-centric. It seems to me that there are so many people out there who have had so many significant problems that they have to think/worry about food every moment of their days. I am seriously beginning to wonder if I should even have the surgery. I am in good physical shape - it isn't so much what I eat as much as the sheer volume. I have read numerous stories from banders stating that since they aren't able to eat ____ they are making what I feel are bad food choices in order to "just eat something." I feel desperate about my weight and have been hoping that the band would finally provide me with the extra control I needed - now I am wondering if it will even bring more stress and problems in my life. :help: Any advice or insight would be greatly appreciated.

Purple Girl, The decision whether or not to get the band is very personal and also a very big decision. It is good to have your family supporting your wanting the band, however, if your Dad cannot learn to accept the band then you will have to determine whether or not his support is a deciding factor for you. You should talk to your Dad and ask him what his specific reservations about the band are. In the meantime, you can learn more about the procedure and how you will live after the band. Sit down and talk with your Dad and try to address each of his specific concerns. Below is a link from the makers of the Lap-Band which you and your Dad might find helpful. http://www.lap-band.com/lapband/documents/7.6%20HM0348%20Surgical%20Aid%20Booklet.pdf I wish you the best!

Wheetsin - Your posts are always so articulate and full of great insight and advice. Thank you for responding. After thinking about what everyone has said all afternoon and talking with my Mom and best friend (who had RNY) I have decided to go forward. While I still can't say I am 100%-without-a-single-doubt, I now realize that my nerves and tendancy to look for the negatives were getting the best of me! Not anymore! Thanks guys! I love this board!

Marjon and Gayle: My start weight was 215 and I am 5'3". For my ticker I used my first goal of 150 pounds, which would be a loss of 65 pounds. Ultimately, if I could I would like to get down to 130, which would be a loss of 85 pounds. I had researched the band several years ago but quickly came to the conclusion that I could not qualify. While I am considered to be in good overall health there have been several issues which have started to develop which caused me to start reinvestigating the band. I have PCOS, glucose intolerance, and elevated cholesterol. Diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and sleep apnea which all run in my family are "in my future" if I do not lose the weight according to my PCP. I went to a local surgeon in FL who approved me for the band and subsequently decided to go with Dr. Ortiz in Mexico. I will be a self-pay. When it comes down to it though for me the emotional damage I have felt from being overweight is a huge motivating factor for me. I know that a lot of people have a start weight which is much higher than mine and they would be thankful to be at my weight. It may sound crass to some, but I used to be considered one of the prettiest girls growing up. I received a lot of attention for my looks, and was treated very differently from men and women. Please try to remember that everyone has different thresholds of pain they can feel before they feel like they are broken and miserable. I have basically become a hermit over the years. I do not want to get those looks from strangers, or run into old friends who look at me like "what happened to her?!?", or hear someone say you would be so pretty if you only lost weight, or have a child follow me into a dressing room chanting "you look fat", or have an old lady loudly proclaim to her daughter "look how fat she is", have a man say "I think you are really smart, funny, and a great person but you are just too fat for me.", or in other instances feel like an invisible person when I am in public. I just can't take it anymore.

All of these comments were really helpful to me and have helped relieve some of my fears/recognize that I am really just overthinking things... “I'm not hungry all the time, I don't spend all day thinking about what I'm going to eat next, I don't have to worry about making myself stop eating before I feel satisfied. For the first time in my life I think that I'm eating like a normal person is supposed to eat.” I would love to feel this way. “This had been my life cycle for the past 15-20 years (lose, regain, lose, regain) and made me realize I obviously couldnt do it my own and had to try something different.” Last year really felt like the last straw for me. I was working out with a trainer twice a week and working out on my own 2-3 times a week and still had problems losing weight. I lost inches but did not lose pounds and it really took a toll on me. I felt that with all of that effort I really should have been seeing better results. I am tired of failing and really feel I have come to the point where I need to see some significant results for my sanity. “Just the forced slowing down caused by the need to chew everything was enough to help me to lose. Add the exercise in, and I am on a slow but steady track to lose 35-50 lbs a year…Struggle every day to lose - and then continue to struggle every day to maintain that loss...” Even if the band lets me see a more modest loss as long as I am no longer gaining and have a greater sense of control over food I feel like I will have been a success.

Yes, the emotional damage I have sustained from being overweight has been tremendous...this really made me think about my long term motivations for my decision.

I am getting banded on 2/20 by Dr. Ortiz in Tijuana. Today is my first day of the pre-op diet - so far so good! Good luck to everyone! ~Sara

I cannot thank you enough for posting your warning about Splenda! I have suffered from what I thought was "lactose intolerance" or "irritable bowel syndrome" terribly for the last several years. I always found it odd that I could eat some products containing milk but when I had my coffee (with tons of Splenda) it would always make me sick. After reading some testimonials online regarding feelings of anxiety and depression I am pretty alarmed. I had been diagnosed as being depressed and was put on several different medications but it seemed like they never worked - which I found to be quite odd. I am wondering if Splenda was the cause of those feelings? Regardless, I have already thrown my Splenda out - I am convinced that was the culprit of my intestinal problems - at the very minimum!

There doesn't seem to be much information on the Mini Gastric Bypass online. After looking at some illustrations on Dr. Rutledge's website it looks like a surgery which the initial Doctor I consulted with once used. He said that the staples which would be formed to the right could be pulled out if this area was stretched by food. He told me that he only performed about 20 of these surgeries before switching to the lap-band. There were some key positive aspects of the lap band which made me choose to go with it vs. other WLS: the surgery is less invasive, the fact that the lap-band is reversible, you are less likely to lose hair and suffer from malabsorbtion, and you can have the band tailored to your needs through fills and unfills. Watching my closest friend struggle with Gastric Bypas over the last 18 months also influenced my decision. She lost a tremendous amount of weight in the first 6 months - close to 100 pounds. But since then she has gained and lost and cannot seem to get any lower than 265. I think she has learned eating habits to avoid dumping syndrome. She picks at small amounts all day long so she avoids any pain and discomfort. I also think she made a mistake when she ignored her Doctor's instructions and started eating whole foods (chicken wings!) a week after her surgery. I believe that she stretched her new stomach pouch that way. Ultimately it is a personal decision. Obviously there isn't only one surgery to work for everyone. I think it is important to dicuss all of your eating habits and any physical conditions with your Doctor and let them advise you on your best option. I also found it helpful to talk to several different Doctors to understand the differences in pre-op and post-op support that they offer. Here is some additional info which you might find useful: Illustration of Mini Gastric Bypass: http://clos.net/mgb_drawing01.htm Article on Lap Band Weight Loss vs. Gastric Bypass: http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/lapband/cmsID,8222/mode,content/a,cms/ Article on Mini Gastric Bypass: http://www.newsweekshowcase.com/healthcare/clos-gastric-bypass.php

Jodie, After reading all of your posts I feel like you share many viewpoints of my ex-boyfriend. He had seen a counselor before and felt it was no help to him. After seeing several more, he was finally diagnosed as having bi-polar disorder. The rapid up and down emotions you seem to exhibit make me think that you might be the same. He didn't have much money at the time but was so miserable he managed to get the money to go see a counselor. He had researched bi-polar disorder online and thought that it might be what was bothering him. The counselor confirmed his suspicions and he was immediately placed on Geodon. He is now feeling much better, has not been so self-destructive, and has begun to get his life back on track. It is hard to admit that you have a problem and ask for help...I can relate to that myself. Even when it comes to my weight - for me to get to the point of deciding to get the lap-band was tough. I felt like a failure, that I wasn't self-motivated, and that I didn't have control. For years I have been miserable about my weight and it has effected every aspect of my life. It finally hit me that I was not living life and that I owed myself more. It was hard for me to admit that I couldn't handle it myself and that I needed to ask for help. I have gotten over my pride and am now making the steps to improve my life. I hope that you will make whatever sacrifice you need to so that you can start to begin to feel better. I wish you all the best. Sara

Today I attended a consultation at my Doctor's office and was told that only 45 to 50% of people who have the Lap-Band done lose any weight. The nurse practioner said that their specific patients have had a 50% success rate. These figures seem very discouraging to me. :phanvan When I questioned him as to why only 50% lose weight he said that people cheat/cannot overcome the emotional or mental obstacles they need to overcome to change their lifestyle. He went on to state that he thinks the figure is 50% because some patients who have BMI's in the 50-60 range have elected to have the Lap-Band and have not been successful, which he feels skews the results. We briefly discussed my health and eating patterns and he feels that since my weight is based more on the quantity of food I eat vs. eating foods which in the future would be cheating foods (ice cream, shakes, etc.) that I would be an "ideal candidate." I find it hard to believe that all of these people cheat after going to the expense/physical demands pre- and post-op to cheat that dramatically. He even stated that they have a patient who has only lost 5 pounds in a year. I asked him specifically what he would do if someone was not losing any weight and was not cheating. He said that he would not tighten the band - that he relies on a more conservative approach and leaves the band more open to "make more of the brunt of it rest on the patient's shoulders." I am feeling very discouraged and misled by the information that I was given previously my the actual Doctor - I was told the success rate was more like 70%, with loss averaging 1 pound a week. However, the nurse practitioner will be in charge of all of the fills and if his approach is overly conservative it will affect my progress. I am self pay and am feeling very hesitant about committing myself to payments of about $350 a month for the next 5 years for something that might not even work for me. I believe that I can commit to eating the right foods, however, the major benefit of the bad to me is the idea that it restricts the amount of food I eat. I worry that if the nurse practioner leaves the band to loose, I believe I will not obtain the benefit I am looking for. Has anyone else been given this type of success rate by their Doctors? Please help, I am feeling confused! Any advice would be appreciated! ~Sara

"Actually there was a very good study just recently published by Dr. Paul O'Brien which showed an excess body weight of 87% in patients pretty close to your preop BMI of 38 (the study was for BMI 30-35)." Thanks, Dr. C! :hail: Here is an article and the medical study if anyone else is interested in reading it: http://doctor.medscape.com/viewarticle/531562 http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/abstract/144/9/625?hp

I am now scheduled to have my surgery with Dr. Ortiz in Tijuana on 2/22! So far so good. Everyone I have dealt with there so far has been great! Thanks again to everyone for your words of encouragement and advice.

As a follow up - even though the Nurse Practioner had said that I would be an "ideal candidate" for Lap-Band they have since changed their minds. Because I asked questions about the discrepancy between the information I was provided with at the seminar (70% success vs. 45-50% success) they have decided that they will not perform the sugery on me. Because I specifically said that I felt that the information seminar had been misleading and in conflict with what I was later told they said that they "believed that a relationship with a patient had to be established on a more positive note". I was pretty shocked. I mean asking questions about what I can realistically expect made them think I should be denied as a patient? I am just trying to be as informed as possible before I invest a total of about $18,000 in this surgery! I guess most people walk in there with no questions or concerns? Geez! Sorry for trying to obtain clarification about such an important decision!