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Great news Al! Hope all goes well and you are able to change your date. Keep us informed on your progress.

Welcome Brooke. I hope you find the information and support you are looking for on this site... I know that I have. Your surgery date will be here before you know it. I also agree that it is great that you are taking this step now. You won't have to suffer your adult years as obese like so many of us on this forum. Good for you. Good luck and take care,

Hi Barbara, I am glad to hear that you are OK and feeling better. I hope you don't have any more problems. Take Care,

Hi Shelly, Thank you so much for sharing your progress with all of us. It sounds like Inamed was able to convince your doctor to look into this a little more seriously. Please let us know how it goes with your restriction. I hope this is this resolves all your issues. Take Care,

Wow Becky... You are doing great!!! I remember when you were first banded. Congratulations on your progress... I hope I can be as successful. I may be getting my first fill next week, the doc will decide after checking my weightloss, food amounts, etc. I feel like I eat so much less than I use to, but I agree with you I can eat more on some days than on others. Glad to hear that you are doing so well. Take Care,

I am so sorry to hear of your denial. I was there for a moment, so I know how you feel... but it sounds like you are staying positive and just moving on to the next step. I say fight with all your might and let me know how important this is to you and your health. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

Hi Kathy, I am sorry to hear about your band surgery being postponed and also that you have to have your gallbladder removed. I am no medical professional, but I have seen other posts from people who have had gallbladder and band at the same time as well as hernia repair and band at the same time. I would think that there is more risk of infection doing one surgery and two weeks later doing an additional surgery... but like I said, I am no professional. I wonder what they do the second time around... Do they enter in the same incisions or create new ones elsewhere on your stomach? I hope it all works out for the best. Keep your chin up! You will be banded before you know it!

Yes, good luck Traci... I am rooting for you!

Hi Baileym, I was in and out of the OR in 1.5 hours and if you think about the fact that they put me under, changed the location of my IV, prepped me for surgery, etc. the actual operation probably did only take 50 mins. My experience in the recovery room was a different story... They had no bed for me and I stayed there for 6 hours. You want to talk about freaking my family out. I had to finally ask them to go get my mom and let her stay with me in recovery because I knew she was going crazy trying to figure out what was going on... And to top that off, they called 2 code blues and were also paging my surgeon. She was a wreck! Anyway, just sharing my experience.

YEA!!! Jennye! I have been following your progress since you were banded and you are doing GREAT! I liked seeing your pictures and hearing about your progress... AND even though restriction has been somewhat of a hassle for you lately, I am thankful you have been sharing your questions and experiences. I can't tell you how much this Forum and folks like you have helped me as I move along this journey. Congratulations! :P

Hi Renata, Like Birdee, I have not experienced this... but I don't think your doctor was very sensitive by saying you will look back in a few months and see this as a minor set-back... that seems especially uncaring given the fact that you are a self-pay. I don't blame you for being upset. Do you have any idea why this happened? I just saw a post the other day from Ashanti and someone asked if she felt her port flip when it happened. I believe she said she felt a sharp pain... Did you have a similar experience? It sounds like you had no clue that there was a problem. I have another question... sorry :think Everytime I go for my check-ups with my surgeon... they check the position of my port. Did your doctor do this at your check-ups before this first fill? I am sorry that you have to go through this... I hope things look up for you real soon. Take Care,

Hi there, I have seen a lot of people with the same fears. I never really had any fears, but I also thought I would bounce back a lot quicker than I actually did... No real complications, just normal aches and pains. I just had to find ways to make my life easier... lots of rest was the best thing to do. 6 weeks of liquids seems like an awful long time. Did you doctor give you any reason why he/she recommends you stay at this stage for so long? I don't even think Inamed recommends liquids for 6 weeks. There are some unslightly side affects of the liquid diet that I am glad only lasted a week for me. I was on Clear Liquids (with the exception of 2 Protein drinks per day) for one week and pureed foods for 2 weeks after that... I am now on 3 weeks of soft foods. I wouldn't worry about nausea and vomiting. The doctors normally give some IV meds for this while you are in surgery and during your overnight hospital stay. I also had to show my doctor I had no problems keeping fluids down before I was released from the hospital and about 3 hours before I was released they gave me one last dose of anti-nausea meds. I never felt any nausea nor did I throw-up. I only had to take one sip of the barrium, so that didn't even make me sick or gag. I am sure that you will do just fine. Feel free to post any questions here... the folks on this forum are very helpful. Take Care and Congratulations!

Good luck Shana. I hope your next fill experience is a little more positive... Or should I say, I hope your doctor gets a clue! Hope all goes well.

Welcome... I hope you find all the support you need. Everyone here is very kind and helpful. Let us know how your investigation goes and what you end up deciding. Take Care,

All the best... hope you are feeling back on your feet real soon. Bring us up to date when you feel like it. Take Care and get plenty of rest.

Hi Sam, Don't worry about the abundance of females on this site... we do have some male companions and everyone regardless of sex is helpful and friendly. I hope you find all the research you are looking for... feel free to ask any questions, everyone here is so warm and willing to assist. Good luck in your research.

Hi Nikki, Glad to hear you are feeling better. It can't be comfortable sleeping upright in a chair... Have you tried propping yourself up in bed with a number of pillows. I slept inclined in bed for the first week and it really helped me be able to sleep and get out of bed when I needed to. Also, I took a large beach towel and folded it across my stomach so that I could put my arms to my sides and apply some pressure with the towel against my stomach. This really helped me feel more comfortable, like something was adding support to my "loose" insides. Eventually, I switched the towel to a small down pillow... anything to get comfortable. You will feel better with each passing day... hang in there and get your rest. I am really happy to hear that you called your doctor and got some help. Take Care,

Hi Ashanti, Thanks for sharing with us about your port replacement. I hope you are feeling better really soon. Take Care and congratulations on your 40lb weight loss. That must feel great!

Hi Denise, Just one last comment... I just picked up another package of the Curad's Scar Therapy at Target. They have changed the design to a "clear" pad vs. a "white" one... Anyway, it now clearly says that it works for Keloid scars as well. Good luck. Anne

Hi Marsha, Congratulations! It sounds like you are doing pretty well. Good for you. I agree with Alexandria... get all the rest you can. Take Care,

Congratulations! I hope your surgery date is real soon. Keep us up to speed on your progress. Take Care,

Hi Nikki, I am sorry that you are having so many problems. I agree with Nancy, I think you should get in touch with your doctor immediately. Did you have the barium swallow under floroscopy before leaving the hospital? After I had it, I stayed in the hospital an additional 5 hours taking in fluids and Jello to ensure that I was able to keep fluids down. They were also montoring my urine out take even did an ultra sound to make sure my bladder was releasing all Fluid. After I started getting more fluids, I was releasing more and then I could go home. Vomiting is very bad and your doctor should be able to call in a suppository... but you need fluids to survive and if you cannot keep anything down, then I think your doctor should know this. I hope you are feeling better soon and please let us know how you are doing. Take Care,

Hi Chris, I have darker skin, so I wouldn't say that my scars are purple... but they were dark pink and raised slightly above the skin when I started the Curad's Scar Therapy. I have noticed that they have turned from pink to brown and are still a few shades darker than my natural skin color... but I know from past scars that this is the normal process my body follows. Eventually, the color should fade and even out more with my natural skin tone... but I think that the Scar Therapy will help to smooth and level out the appearance. There is no medication on the pads, but for some reason they seem to help. I will provide another update once I am done with the 21 day treatment. The instructions say that it does work faster when the scars are new. Hope this info is helpful.

Thanks Terri! I hope that things start looking up for you real soon. Yes, I have felt my self eating a lot more than I was right after surgery... but I also know that it is about 3/4ths less than I would eat pre-band. I use to graze... I would eat normal size meals for Breakfast and lunch but in the evenings I would graze until bed and consume large amounts of food. If I sat down for a proper meal it would be a huge meal and I would clean my plate. I now eat until I am satisfied... somedays this is more food than on other days and I no longer graze. I have 3 small meals each day and if I am more hungry I may have a small snack between my meals. I am trying to concentrate on chewing and eating slowly. Getting use to not drinking during my meals and for a good time afterwards. I figure that this is the time for me to get in all the good habits for example like my exercise... then when I start getting fills, it might not be so overwhelming. I think we are both going through some pretty normal feelings and emotions. We are very lucky to have this forum where others understand what we are going through and can offer support and advise. I hope you are feeling better and keep up the great job! Take Care,

Hi there, As you read through the posts on this site... you will quickly learn that just about every doctor has a different set of rules for their band patients. What I have seen most recommended is that you follow YOUR doctors orders. I figure it is probably because your doctor actually did your surgery and knows the state of your stomach and the band. My doctor had me on Clear liquids for 1 week with the exception of 2 Protein drinks per day... but I could not have applesauce or yogurt. The second week, I jumped right to pureed foods and now I am 4 weeks out and still in the "mushy" food stage... but I eat some solids and chew them to mush before swallowing. It sounds like the list your doctor gave you will work just fine, my one suggestion would be to not eat solid foods until you have your doctor's OK. For example, my doctor specifically said no salad yet... so I have avoided this, but eat other mushy veggies. Take Care and hang in there.