Sheila

Anyone know of any support groups in the Columbus Ohio area?

Dr. Timothy Duckett in Maumee (Toledo) did my surgery. Not sure if he does fills on patients that he didn't band but you can call to find out His number is 419-893-5591. Good luck

Hi. I am only 2 weeks post-op and I can tell you that for me the surgery was extremely easy. Hardly any pain at all. I too struggled with the surgery aspect but came to realize it as a last chance type of thing. I have been over-weight my whole life and could not deal with it anymore. I could lose weight, but it always came back with more pounds. I felt like it was the only thing in my life that I couldn't succeed at. I have a wonderful hubby, 2 beautiful children and a great carreer....but that weight issue was just too much. My decision was finalized when I put my other health issues in the formula. Diabetes, high blood pressure and joint pain, not to mention no energy to do anything, helped me make the decision to go for it. I am very happy that I made the choice. I have lost 32 pounds since November (4 since the surgery) and I can already tell a difference in my body. Sorry this is so long, but I think all of us here have gone thru the same soul searching that you are now in. Good luck in making your decision. Sheila

I am a real fan of unjury Protein shakes. I bought the chocolate, vanilla and unflavored types. I mix the powder with 1 cup of milk, about 4 ice cubes and blend it in a blender. Yummy!! I have put Peanut Butter with the vanilla, peanut butter and 1/2 banana with the vanilla, ang peanut butter with the chocolate. They are all very tasty. You can get samples from Unjury so you don't have to invest in the whole canister if you don't like it. Sheila

Hi Jeanie, I live in the Columbus area and was just banded on April 5 by Dr. Duckett in Maumee. Doing very well and very happy with the band. Are you banded yet or what phase are you in? Sheila

Congrats on your surgery and hope you have a speedy recovery. Sheila

:banana :banana I have finally landed in Bandlandia. After almost a year of research and some complications enroute, I was finally banded on Monday, April 5. I am doing wonderful. Haven't taken any pain meds since leaving the hospital on Tuesday. I even had a 2 1/2 hour drive home and made it without any problems. :banana :banana I am a little sore in the lower left part of my stomach but it's not bad. I also had some constipation but milk of magnesia took care of that! I think I am just so happy to finally get banded that nothing can bring me down! Sheila

Hi Kataylee, Congrats on being banded! I was banded on Monday this week, so we'll go thru this experience together. It took a couple of days before the belching began, but once it started, it is constant. My kids are now calling me the belching queen!! Not a title I really wanted but I guess I'll deal with it. Every day gets better. I didn't have much pain at all so I hope you aren't either. I haven't been hungry at all this whole week which is amazing to me. I'm sure as my life gets back to normal I'll be hungry (although wouldn't it be wonderful if we never get hungry again!) Good luck in this healing phase and I'll be watching your posts. Sheila

Hi Becky, I am sorry to hear about your situation. I hope that whatever is wrong they can fix without another surgery. Hang in there. Let us know how it turns out. Sheila

Happy Easter right back to you and to everyone! What a wonderful day!

Chanell, There is another support group called Spotlight Health that is very good too. I spend my time between LapbandTalk & Spotlight Health. I bumped a previous post called "Banding 101" that will get you there. It has a Banding 101 post that answers just about any question you might have about banding. Good luck on your journey. Sheila

Thanks for all the well wishes. Kathy- yes, my port is on my left side. If I remember correctly, the port is stitched into a muscle, which I am assuming is what causes the pain/discomfort. It's getting better everyday though. Sheila

Hi Bob, Good luck with your surgery and trip to MX. I'm sure everything will go fine for you. I was just banded on April 5 and am doing great. No real pain..surgery was a breeze. You'll be banded and back home before you realize it! Take care and let us know how everything goes. Sheila

I didn't have to have that test. I had to have an EKG, psych test, Upper GI, Venous Doppler and lab work. Hope you don't have to endure that test but from other replies it doesn't sound as bad as you've been told. Sheila

Hi Snowy Owl, Welcome to the board. I too have a family member (sister) who had the lapband about 15 months ago. She was my inpiration to get it. I am scheduled for surgery on April 5 and really looking forward to it. Good luck in your journey. This boad is a great source of information and inspiration. Sheila

Congratulations Alexandria! That is awesome. Losing weight is a wonderful thing but being able to really tell it yourself is a real morale booster. Keep up the good work. You deserve all the NSVs possible! Sheila

Way to go Babs. What an inspiration you are! I will be banded on April 5 and I can't wait to get to where you are. You make me know that it really can happen! Thanks for posting your accomplishments.

Well, I thought I posted this yesterday, but evidently it didn't take. I was originally scheduled for lapband on 1/19 but it was canceled because I had an abnormal EKG and was told I needed to get cardiac clearance before I could have the surgery. Well, I had another EKG, a nuclear stress test, a heart scan, and a heart cath (which put me in CCU for about 24 hours due to internal bleeding) but I finally got the clearance and my heart is fine! I have been rescheduled for April 5 and am both excited and scared. The internal bleeding I had was very painful and I really don't want to go thru that again. But I want and need the lapband, so I'm going forward with it. I keep telling myself that after everything I went thru with the heart cath, the lapband surgery should be a piece of cake (no pun intended, since cake helped get me in this mess to begin with!). Anyway, I haven't posted much, but I've been lurking for a long time. Started researching the lapband last May and it's taken me this long to get here. I'll be so happy to get to Bandlandia with you all. I'm sure I'll have lots of questions then. Thanks for listening (reading). Sheila

Well, I finally have my 2nd surgery date. The first one had to be cancelled because I was told that I had to have a cardiac clearance because of an abnormal EKG. Well, after a stress test, a heart scan, a heart sonogram and a heart cath, I have the clearance and have been rescheduled for April 5. I am excited and scared. When they did the heart cath, I had internal bleeding that kept me in CCU for about 24 hours and it was very painful. Now, of course, I'm getting a lot of negative feedback about why I want to do this so soon after all that mess. I just want to get my band and get on with life! I have lived and breathed this lapband for almost a year now and am so ready for it, even though I am scared. Anyway, just a couple more weeks, and I am coming to Bandland! PS The good thing about all of this is that I have lost 24 pounds since November! WOOHOO for me! Sheila

Bright, I can't believe it's been 3 months already since you had your surgery! I remember reading your pre-op posts and especially the flip-flops and all the stories concerning them. You look fabulous and must feel wonderful too. How proud you should be of yourselfl Your posts are inspiring, in both good and bad ways! I will be thinking about things to tell the "skinny" people when they start asking me about my weight. There's certainly things I want to tell them, but don't know if I have the guts that you do! Congrats on the weight loss. Can't wait to join you in Bandlandia! Sheila

My doctor puts everyone on a full liquid diet 5 days prior to surgery. I have to go have a stress test next week and hopefully everything will be fine and then I can reschedule my surgery. I'm hoping I can still have it sometime in Feb. I have been able to stick to the liquid diet for breakfast and lunch and then eat dinner. I guess I'll stay with it as long as I can. I really feel much better eating less. But then the month of January has always been a good month for dieting for me. Thanks for your replies and well wishes. Sheila

I started my pre-surgery liquid diet last Monday and was on it for 3 days before being told my surgery was going to have to be postponed. I continued on it for the rest of the week, but not the weekend. Today, I decided to see if I could get back on it for most of my meals. So far, so good. I had a protein shake (UNJURY-chocolate) for breakfast and just had an Ensure shake for lunch. I have yogurt and a Dannon Light n Fit smoothie for snacks later in the afternoon. I plan on eating solid food for dinner. My question is this--do you think this is a good idea since I know that I'm going to have to be on a liquid diet once my surgery has been rescheduled and then post-op too? I don't want to get burnt out on the liquids, but I am losing weight and I know that's a plus before surgery. What's your thoughts on this? Sheila

Way to go Carmen. You must have looked and felt beautiful! Congrats! Sheila

I had my appointment with the cardiologist yesterday and was told that my EKG was as close to normal as possible except for one small "blip". However, because I am a diabetic and have high blood pressure, he wanted to go ahead and do a stress test just to make sure there are no other problems. He did an echo-cardiagram yesterday and the stress test is scheduled for next week. If the stress test is ok, then I can re-schedule my surgery. Hopefully, I will be able to reschedule it for Feb. By the time I do have surgery, I should have a baseline health report for everything! I guess that's good for the future, but with weight loss, I expect everything to change! Good news is that I have lost another 1 1/2 pounds. HOORAY!

My surgery was scheduled for Monday, Jan 19. I went thru all the pre-op testing and thought everything was a go. I already received insurance approval. Started my liquid diet on Monday and it was going so well. Yesterday, I had a call from my PCP telling me that the hospital had faxed my EKG to her and wanted her to sign a cardiac clearance form, which she couldn't do since she is not a cardiologist. Now, I can't get in to see a cardiologist until next week, hence, surgery has to be postponed! Then the surgeons office called and said there was a problem with the insurance approval because the approval letter didn't specify the procedure or CPT being approved!! What a day! I know that it's for my own good, but it is so disappointing after being all psched up for the surgery. I am still waiting for the call definitely cancelling the surgery, but I don't see how anything else can happen! Has anyone else had to have a cardiac clearance and what did it consist of? Stress test? Sheila