Doddie63

Hi: I had a thyroid/diabetic specialist well respected in his field and was written up in the papers and also lectured around the country and overseas. He has since retired. He diagnosed my Graves disease (hyperthyroid). After treatment, I became Hypo and was put on synthroid and remember his words. The blood tests show a range that doctors consider normal, but because of my weight he wanted me at the top of the range. He felt overweight people have a slower BMR than most. I don't lose weight quickly but I do lose weight steadily. Perhaps you should ask your doctor to consider putting you on synthroid. The drug takes up to six weeks to take affect. No harm in asking?

Try going to "Northwest Fill Management" located in Arlington,Washington State. Approx. 50 mines north of Seattle. There telephone # 360-512-4220 www.northwestfill.com Checked website and the telephone number has changed.

Doctor, Mitchell Phone: 403 264-6720 Notes: Fill Doctor in Calagary He may have moved as this is old information given to me by TLBC. Also, I believe there are two fill nurses in Bellingham Washington State. If you do a search on the internet you should find them as they advertise. As well maybe somone will read this and forward the information. I will search as well to get the link.

Did Andrew tell you he was banded by a Canadian clinic and he has his support. What support in Canada was provided to you. Do you have a fill doctor/nurse close by. Have you read postings from banders who have gone to ERs in Ontario and the reception they received? There is no question that Dr. Ortiz is a good surgeon, but what after support does he provide. Many people contemplating going to Mexico would like to read about what aftercare the Mexican clinic provides in canada.

Hi Vanman: I guess you missed my new link about Dr.Woodhead. He is no longer doing patients from Mexico or from any other banding clinic. I saw him yesterday and asked him outright and he replied no that his practice was just too busy. He was going to maintain his support to patients he already has, but he will not be taking on any more. The only fill nurses, with the exception of local GPs who do fills for their patients, are down in Bellingham or having to fly to Calgary.

congratualtions susansilver. looks like your journey so far has been successful. How much fill did you get and what is the total?

What a great early birthday present. You may not have the cake, but in reality you can still Celebrate a wonderful birthday. Imagination is a wonderful thing. Congratulations on the start of a new life.

Frypan. I would suggest to you that you can eat anything you like except not a lot of it. A recent study has indicated that individuals that track their food accurately every day lose weight. I use www.fitday.com every meal and snack. I won't be neglectful by omitting foods because the only person I hurt is myself. I even factor in a bit of ice cream and potato chips. By knowing what I am consuming I know when to tread softly when it comes to what I eat that day. Try it you may surprise yourself.

Had port corrected on June 5. Doing well. Have lost 70 lbs How about you. How has it been since banded?

On the national news last night a study was revealed that individuals that kept track of what they ate steadily lost weight. Seems the record kept them honest and gave them a visual picture of their intake. Personally I can't trust my eye and brain to agree what a portion is so I keep track of my daily intake on www.fitday.com. It is a bit of a bother to set up your favorite food but once you do that it just takes minutes a day. The other thing, don't focus so much on the ugly word "exercise" focus more on moving. You know all the tricks, but are you putting into practice those tricks. Like parking farther away at the grocery store, taking a flight of stairs instead of the elevator, etc. Keeping track of your food intake is not dieting. I factor in ice cream, cookies, nachos from time to time. This way there is no resentment that I can't have what others do. Hard work but I hope this helps you find the tools that work for you Good luck.

For what it is worth, I don't exercise either. Joint issues but I found by tracking (not dieting) just tracking what I eat and what type of physical movement I have such as ironing etc. it helped me keep the portions and choices to an honest level. Strange, as I lose weight slowly (.75 lbs per week) I find I have more energy and thus want to move more. My doctor told me that the fat stores estrogen and as I lose fat the estrogen is released thus the energy bursts. All I know, I have more energy now than I ever have had. From reading posts, I find there are more slow losers than fast ones. I believe by focusing on my eating habits the weight will automatically come off. So far so good.

Telephone the clinic and ask. Seems to me the best way of getting that information.

Let us know how your surgery goes Plevy. Very interested in how you are faring

I have been fighting with myself as to whether or not I need a fill. I had some stress the past few weeks and vomited at least 6 times. Always at dinner I am the most restricted. However, I continue to lose .75 lbs per week on average. Just don't know what to do.

Would I do?

If that doesn't work, go to Home Page and look for "Suggestions, Feedback & Questions". Click on that then look for "how to get a ticker in your signature" Instructions worked for me.

Just an add on. I hope you can visit Canada also. I think you would like it up here. I have travelled all of the states and totally love the country and all the people I have met and feel Canada and the USA are so similar you will enjoy us.

Hi: There is no problem whatsoever with coughing. I had bronchitis this spring with no problem with the band. In fact, I don't even know I h ave the band around my stomach unless I forget to chew my food, then it reminds me in a big hurry. Most people do not have trouble with their band but there are complications that can occur. Band slippage can usually be fixed by defilling and allowing the band to recover and go back in place, or the surgeon can go in and put the band back in place. The most serious complication is band erosion. That usually means the band has to be removed until your stomach heals then another band put on or the surgeon may tell you that the band cannot be put on. The band has been used over 20 years in Europe and Australia is recognized by the medical profession. It is just relatively new in Canada and the USA. The vast majority of patients have no problem with the band but like all surgical intervention there are risks. The beauty of the band is ........it is totally reversible with no lasting affects. Not like the gastric bypass where there are malabsorption problems, hair loss, etc. But I am not putting the bypass down just to compare one is reversible and the other is not.

Hi: I am 65 and I got my band in Feb. 07. I had very little hair loss but have had contact with people who have had more. Initially your diet is restricted but after the 4 to 6 week time period to heal after surgery, healthy meals and vit. supplements are recommended your hair should return to normal. I can't recall anyone posting they lost their hair in chunks and had to wear a wig due to the band. I would suggest looking through the links of this website and see if there is a link on hair loss.

suzpat. Yes I am very proud and for the first time in my life I am sustaining the weight loss and the amount of food intake. Don't dwell on the size of the opening as you will be responsible for that. Some people like the high fill level of the band but I don't. For instance my band is 10 ccs max. and I am at 5.5 ccs. I have enough restriction that tells me I am full, but the opening to the stomach is not so small that when I fail to chew every peice into watery mess, I don't vomit. Only when I forget and gulp do I have pain and then I vomit. The higher the fill level the more inclined you are to eat soft junk foods. Amazing how potato chips or cheese pops, cookies ice cream go down so easy. Generally, everyone is encouraged to eat hard protein such as chicken breast, fish or meat. With these foods, you must chew everything to a fine mulch. Twelve chews is approximately the amount of times before the relex is to swallow. So if you take large bites, after 12 times it is likely large chunks will be swallowed. My clinic encourages me to take small bites and chew at least 20 times. It is a bit of a challenge for me a gulper but most time I chew properly but old habits die hard. Although I am not dieting, I track what my intake is through FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal I personally find that keeping track keeps me honest. For instance, this week I had potato chips while watching a movie. I did not feel guilty because I had tracked all week and my average intake was 1,200 calories a day so one day when I zoomed up to 2,000 was not going to cause a weight gain.

suzjpat. The extreme protein no fat diet varies by doctor, weight of patient. It is maintained for a short period of time whereas a diet to lose weight takes a lifetime. Anyone can lose weight but not many of us can keep it off. This is where the band comes in. As you fall back to familiar eating patterns, the band reminds you short and quick to stop and get back on track. It is only a tool to help you maintain your smaller intake of calories not a magic wand. As the band is a private medical issue, I am not aware that you need a letter from a doctor. However, insurance companies may so if one doctor won't refer you why not try one that will? Not everyone vomits (nice term is PBing -productive burp). I call a spade a spade it is vomiting. I vomit because I gulp my food and do not always remember to consciously chew my food or I ignore the warning signals I am full. I am getting better though as I have gone from vomiting every day to two or three times a month. In my view, bandsters are not on a diet. We can eat anything as long as it is not more that 3oz of hard protein such as fish, chicken meat and 3-6 ozes of veggies. Many bandsters have problems eating anything white especially white bread. It seems to revert back to its doughy stage and stick in the pouch. So we eat healthier grained breads or crackers. What I find amazing is how well I get along on so little food. I am losing weight, full of energy and my health has improved to the point I am now off most of my meds. The pre and post op diets are hard, no question, but we have all gone thru it and I bet there are not too many who would not do it again in order to get the band.

Hi suzpat. After having the band, the diet emphasizes protein (which is eaten first) then veggies. Gastric bypas patients lose a lot of hair but it grows back. Banders lose a small amount but I found I lost very little at the start and have no problem now. Nothing I would worry about. Baldness does occur in women but not from the band. Ask any question no matter how small or trivial it may seem. You must be fully informed. Pay particular attention to aftercare such as proximity of a fill nurse to your home, if you take a clinic far away, do you have the money to fly back to your clinic for band slippage, broken band, stomach erosion, etc. Picking your doctor and clinic is extremely important even if you pay a bit more, factor in the above and you probably will find it cheaper to stay closer to home. Good luck in your research

soonsunny: How about a bit more information about your exercise, your eating, etc. You can get a lot of unhealthy calories past the pouch even if it is too tight. Sometimes if you are too tight, you are inclined not to eat the "hard protein" such as fish, chicken meat and instead eat mushie type foods high in fat or carbs. If it assists you, I swore I would not diet and I don't, but I do track everything I eat on www.fitday.com. This tracking reminds me of the type of food I am eating and giving me an average intake of calories compared to the amount of calories I burn. For instance, watching TV last night I ate potatoe chips. I tracked and found that although I ate 2300 calories that day I still was averaging 1,300 per day over a 7 day period. What tracking does for me is keeping me honest and taking away the guilt trip of worrying about "breaking the sacred rules". Now with planning I can have my occasional treat without my world falling about with guilt. Maybe you should try this until you get back on track.

buttcha. The pre op diet is primarily to shrink your liver. It is a delicate organ that must be moved aside in order to place the band. The length of the pre op depends on your weight. By eating low fat or no fat foods for sometime, the liver looses the fatty tissues. I am sure there is a better medical explanation but this is the definition I got from my surgeon. Each clinic/surgeon has his/her own ideas about what is a good preop diet. For instance. I was 303 lbs and was put on a no fat cottage cheese and no fat, no flavoring yogurt for 30 days. I could eat us much as I liked. After surgery, I was introduced back to whole foods slowly over a period of 30 days. Pure liquid, Puree liquids, soft foods and solids. I am encouraged to emphasize protein first then veggies but never more than one cup of food. I must eat protein every four waking hours. I also take supplements. THE KEY WORDS ARE CHEW, CHEW AND CHEW or you will find the food will not go down past the band and you will be in pain and vomit. It does take time to retrain yourself to eat small amounts and to chew the food but once accomplished you should be well on your way to being "normal" in your eating. Good luck on your research.

frypan what is worrying you. If you are specific, maybe we can help ease those concerns or at least direct you back to your clinic. I personally was scared. But not the operation, but the fact I would never eat my favorite foods, that I couldn't live on a cup of food a day, my hair would fall out, afraid of failure even with the band, and the long term future of the band. Even when I climbed on the op table, my heart jumped with fear of the unknown, but when I woke up, I was all smiles and I am still all smiles. I have had issues about communication, finding another fill doctor but my love the the band has never wavered. I lose .79 lbs per week and to me that is a huge victory. Please let us know what is bothering you maybe we can help put the concerns to rest.