debbiek1

has anyone had the lapband done at mt carmel hospital in columbus, ohio? i have gone to a seminar, gone to a psychological evaluation and am seeing a nutritional counselor next friday. i have anthem BC.BS federal plan and mt carmel is a preferred provider.

Kathy---Happy Birthday About the hair loss--mine fell out really bad when i was losing rapidly but now my hair is great. thicker than before. maybe because i eat more protein and my health is better. i am playing hookie from work today. i dont do the whole drivin' in the snow thing. so i have time to sit in my window and look out at the winter wonderland! i had my band checked with the floroscopy yesterday. dr choban says all looks fine and no leaks. it was a relief because i have wondered at times if it hadnt slipped or if i hadnt stretched my stomach out. sometimes i can eat so much that it worries me. but if she looked and didnt see anything wrong then i am happy. she put a little more in, i was hoping to get that thing filled to capacity so i could start losing some more weight. but she is very conservative. i just love dr choban. her bedside manner works much better for me. she is like my own personal cheerleader. whereas that dr miller reminds me of my exhusband--nagging me about my weight gain and making me feel guilty. that doesnt work for me, it just makes me eat more. I need to feel like the "star pupil" and then i strive to keep that persons faith in me. Be safe out there in this weather!!

djk--welcome to the mt carmel, central ohio forum i dont know dr price. but problems with poor charlene go back as far as two years ago! i havent been active on this forum for a long time but i would have hoped that they would have gotten her some help by now. I guess not. the only advice i have is to be aggressive and persistent. you will have to stay on top of the process the whole way or it will take forever. it took 6 months just to get all my paperwork thru charlene and into the insurance company and only 10 days for the insurance company to approve. my point being--the log jam is in her office.

hi, all. i havent posted in ages. kind of fell off the band wagon. went to see dr miller today for the first time. didnt like him as much as Choban. he is kind of mean! i have gained 5 pounds. i have a 4cc band, it is supposed to be filled to 3.8 but i feel no restriction at all. he only got 2 cc's out of it, so he thinks i may have a leak. he wants me to have my next adjustment using the flouroscopy. but at least this explains why i have been wanting to eat several horses a day! has anyone else had a leak? i dont want to have another surgery. i wonder if i could just go in for more frequent adjustments. it didnt all leak out since september so it must be a small, slow leak.

i have been banded for 15 months. and the gas has never stopped. i work the evening shift and it seems worse after i get to work. i will be okay till around 5pm and then it starts. i have to get up and go for a walk to let loose. thank goodness i work in a factory type setting so it is very noisy in there and no one can hear. it is very uncomfortable and nothing seems to really help. i am about ready to ask my doctor if i can get family medical leave for gas, that way i can call in sick on really bad days. but then again every day is pretty bad. it doesnt seem to matter what i eat. i have tried it all. gasx, mylanta, charcoal tabs--at first i think they work but then they stop. has anyone tried that Activia? does it work. says in two weeks it will stop bloating, diarrhea, constipation and gas. i am willing to try anything.

that is interesting because i have developed a nasal drip, too. i never connected it with the band before, but maybe that is it.

i had the same problem. nothing worked. i tried gasx, beano, charcoal tablets. the funny thing is the gas got really bad after about my 3rd adjustment and for some reason went away after my 4th adjustment. i have not explanation. but that may give you some hope. i was almost to the point of thinking i had to get the band removed because i could not live that way. i work in small office with two men and just cant let loose. but lately things have been better.

hi everyone, i havent been around lately. I see lots of new people and lots of lost pounds! Happy Birthday--Angie---40---you are still a baby!! hopefully you will get the surgery soon. i see not much has changed at mid ohio surgical. still the same complaints. after reading posts that dr choban is booked out thru september, i am getting a little concerned. my last visit was in early june and i was told to come back in 3 months. the receptionist said she could not schedule me that far in advance and that they would call me in two months. are they telling others that, too? have they actually called anyone? do you think i will get in during september or am i looking at oct or nov? the part that kills me is that during orientation a year and a half ago, they emphasized that we had to be committed to routinely seeing the doctor for the rest of our lives. i am beginning to wonder if that committment goes both ways. on a more positive note---all is fine with me. i really havent lost that much more weight but i feel and look great. i would love to hit the 100 pound lost mark but it may be awhile. i still have eating issues. lately i have been on a cookie kick. somehow i can eats lots of those! i am not going to lose 13 more pounds eating cookies everynight.

TM--the squeaky wheel gets the grease. keep on top of them. Sue-I agree. I have been discussing this surgery with a woman at work for 6 months. all the while recommending dr choban. but finally this week i told her that in all honesty she should check out Riverside--if her insurance will allow it. right now, i cant recommend going thru mid ohio surgical. not until they get some help or reorganize. I hate to be negative but facts are facts.

she is at the minimum a nurse. i thought she was a nurse practitioner, which i thought was a step above a regular nurse. but i may be wrong. hitting the mark in a fill must be harder than it looks because a year ago they told me she would be doing the fills. and i never even see her when i go for an appt. i dont get it.

has anyone tried to make their own protein bars? I need to eat at least one a day to keep my protein intake up. my hair is falling out. but protein bars are pretty expensive. I have found some recipes on bodybuilding websites. but i was wondering if anyone here has a fail-proof and tasty recipe.

i never have a problem with rice. or couscous for that matter. maybe it is the way i eat it. i try to mix it with my vegetables. and usually with some sort of a sauce. it goes down fine that way. and i usually eat brown rice or basmati rice. maybe tortillas do cause a problem. if i eat them with meat it is a problem, but if i eat it with vegetables, once again, it goes down fine. especially if there is a lot of salsa involved.

i hate to say it but things seem to be on a downward spiral over there. they need to expand their staff to match their expanding practice. i never thought about trying to schedule an appt at mt carmel east. does dr choban see people out there too? does any one know? i am flexible i can go out there just as easily as downtown. on a lighter note---glad to know everyone is home well and recovering.

lisa, you wont have any trouble sleeping that night in the hospital. you are pretty out of it because of all the anesethia and drugs!!! i would wake up for a few minutes and be right back to sleep.

niki--yes, i would call now and schedule your first fill. if you do, let me know when your appt is. maybe they get "first fillers" in sooner. i would be curious to know.

not to change the subject but i just got back from dr chobans office and i am not happy. first off the waiting room was full. found out she was running an hour and a half behind. then they tell me i am not on the schedule. i have been known to get my dates mixed up but my appt card definitely says 3/18 at 11:15. the good news is i can leave and dont have to wait an hour and a half. but get this---now i cant even get in to see her till may 15. two months. great. my vacation will already be over. the original plan that i discussed with her was that i would come in before my vacation and have half of the liquid removed from my band, so i could eat on my cruise and enjoy the food. scratch that brilliant idea. but the whole scenario just had a bad feeling. what if i really, really felt like i needed an adjustment? i would have to suffer 2 months? if she wants me in there every 6 weeks i better start scheduling 2 or 3 appts at the same time so i can be sure to get in on time. apparantly not only do they need to hire someone to help Charlene, they now need to hire more doctors.

there is so much going on here, i can barely keep up!!! this is great. Angie--congratulations!! Greg--welcome!!! i have been banded since june and like you i was worried about missing food. but i never do. i can eat just about anything. even the things they say we should not eat. i was worried about not being able to eat popcorn which is one of my favorite snacks. but i can eat it, i just eat a cup or so, not the great big, honkin' bowl full i used to eat. the other thing i was worried about was the dried fruit. raisins are another favorite of mine. but i can eat them too. the only things i havent eaten are steak and broccoli. meat does cause me some problems. i dont think about food as much as i used to. i find it quite liberating. i can still go out and eat with friends and enjoy myself. i am saving a lot of time and money by not going to the grocery store every other day. now i enjoy buying new clothes!! i love my new body and all the compliments i get. getting the band was the best thing i ever did. i wish i could have done it 20 years ago.

i have had such terrible and painful gas lately. especially bad when you work in a small office and the other two workers are men. you just cant cut loose. but a friend told me to bend over and try to kiss my knees. i kinda thought she was crazy. but i swear after every time i do it, i burp!!! this has got to help. if it comes out the top maybe less will have to come out the bottom. i have also started taking gasx and it seems to be helping. so hopefully these two things will get me back to normal.

i am now 8 months since surgery. the hair loss is beginning to stop. about 2 months ago i was really worried. the shower would look like sasquatch just took a shower. but it is much better now. i tried the biotin--i dont know if it worked or not. i did try to keep my protein up--dont know if that worked either. personally, i think it is just something that will pass with time once your body adjusts. but i will keep taking biotin and eating my protein, just in case.

Sue and SpecialK---that is so neat that you are both getting banded on the same day!!!

so many people, so many stories!! this thread is popular!! it is great to read everyone story of wondering, hoping, stressing and finally receiving a new lease on life. March is going to be very exciting as so many members will finally get banded. This is going to be so much fun to watch.

Lady QT--I go back on mar 18 for a fill. i dont know that was my 4th fill and i swear i am still hungry. mornings are okay but the evenings are tough. i have over 3cc in and she said it only holds 4. this has me a tad worried. i think i can eat more than i should be able to. one forum on here said that sometimes a fill doesnt kick in for 2-3 weeks. why that would be, i dont know. i hope it does though because right now i dont feel any different than i did before. also that story about your son gave me chills. you were so smart to get him to the dentist. God must have been giving you some guidance because i dont think i would have known that. Hopefully everything will remain calm for you in the future. and good luck with those future BB games

kt bugg---hope you are okay, but either way get yourself to the ER. a hemorroid is not going to give you blood in your urine.

Special K---love the cats!!! Pearl is so pretty. I love Siamese cats. Turler--your cat drinks out of his paw? now that is unusual!!! how does he do that? arent cats fascinating. I have been entertaining a certain "gigolo" cat lately. He comes around every once in awhile, eats, lays around, gets lots of lovin' then leaves for several days. I know he has lots of other women he is seeing. But that is okay, we are "just hooking up", nothing too serious. neither of us is ready to make a committment.

Sue---that is wonderful!!! i am so happy for you. it has been such a long, bumpy journey for you. Special K--take heart from Sue's story. "they" tried to stand in her way to being thin but she prevailed. Nurse Niki--i was at Dr Chobans on thursday around 2. I wonder if you were in the waiting room the same time i was. There were two ladies there that had testing done. One was waiting for a ride and the other worked for the state. We talked briefly. I want to make it to the next meeting at polaris. My work schedule has been so hectic lately. I have been working both my days off every other week, so i dont have much time. I got my 4th fill on thursday. Dr choban said i had 3ccs and that the most the band held was 4. so does that mean i have a 4cc band? i know i should have asked her that. She said i had lost 9 pounds since my last visit, which was nice news. the weight seems to be coming off much slower now. i am not exercising like i should. but Dr C was very happy with my weightloss. I asked if i could get an "unfill" before going on a 3 day disney cruise in May. She was reluctant. but i said i wanted to enjoy the food and how much weight could i gain in 3 days!!! she said she would take half out because if she took it all out i would be starving and eat everything in sight. seems like a fair compromise. and right after the trip i will go in and have it all put back in.