WASaBubbleButt

I never did find a clear protein that didn't make me gag. Maybe someone else has better thoughts on the topic?

Mac... don't you know that personal experience doesn't count? It's what we WANT to be truth that matters, nothing else. ;o)

Hi Lisa..... You will find many here that completely and totally relate to your story. We really have been there/done that. The sleeve, OMG... it's like a band that actually works without all the risks and complications. BUT... you need to think about how close you got to goal with the band. Is restriction enough for you? When you had band problems did you head for the soft good foods or the soft bad foods? That is key, it tells how well you do with restriction alone. Were you at goal at 70#? If so, the sleeve is for you! If you didn't get to goal... maybe you need malabsorption? Only you will know. Welcome to our board!

Would you mind giving us more details? The more details on surgeons the better. You wrote that is is a COE, great! What is the cost for self payers out there? What does the cost include? What kind of aftercare program do they have? How many nights in the hospital are included? How many sleeves have they done? How many gastric bypass have they done? (staple line experience) How many and what kind of leak tests do they do? Just anything you think someone in TX might want to know. I'm especially interested in finding sleeve surgeons in TX as that seems to be a frustrating place for sleeves so the more info you could provide the better! I know they have a lot of band/bypass surgeons but it's great to hear of a sleeve surgeon. Thanks!

My best advice to you is to keep that date! A sleeve is a fantastic thing, you get your life back, you get your sanity back, you get your self esteem back, you get it all! This is the best thing you can do for yourself. Congrats! And welcome to our forum! We grow on you, honest. ;o)

Congrats! I'm really happy for you. You did pick a great surgeon, you'll love him but most of all, you'll LOVE your new life!

Yes! Wayyy better! Thank you! We are going to start calling you an assortment of names, the guy that created the "Alex" look, the software king... you'll see! Seriously, thank you. I PM a lot and that other format was annoying.

HEY! It's good to see you posting! We miss you, hurry up and heal so you can come home!

We are going in circles again. I never claimed you did not have a good experience and you can write it 1000 times and it does not matter. Nobody is arguing with your results. You know, I think you battle the world so much you make assumptions that everyone is battling everything you say. It isn't so.

You didn't even know he worked for Betancourt. Just "knowing" him hardly refutes his previous website. I do not agree that you are in a good position to know his history.

Had you done your research you would have known everything possibly about him including his history. Forgive me, I assumed you did SOME research. Already responded to this previously. I'm going to spin in your circles with you. No clue. Since I never suggested you learn about the program for a surgeon you did not use. For the specific complications you listed in the post I was responding to, it most certainly does not mean surgical skill. Leaks, for example, were not mentioned. Matter of fact, here are the symptoms that you credit your surgeon with, your words: Those words you typed is what I was responding to and I do stand behind my previous comment. The above are how some people respond to the surgery, not a thing in the world to do with surgical skill.

Like it or not, they are the source. If you can prove the source wrong, by all means do it. You are free to read the many many patients that have posted on many boards their negative personal experiences. Yeah, pretty much. Betancourt has such a horrible rep in Mexico that a really good surgeon wouldn't want to work there. LOL! Are you aware that the above have virtually nothing to do with surgeon skill? People respond differently to the surgery, that's how it is. BTW, where is your doc working now? Is he still in practice? I never see him advertising anywhere since he parted ways with Betancourt.

It looks like it most certainly is the same Contreras. Considering they used to link the lap band site (when it existed) to the cancer site: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/695470-post16.html

Do you notice double standards here? You insist and demand to the point of feetie stomping that I back up everything I write and then when I suggest the same rules apply to you, it is somehow different. Sorry, it doesn't work that way. Okay, I'm putting on the Mod Hat here. This is not going to turn into a thread similar to your threads on the other board. If you have personal issues with anyone including me you need to take it to PM. The boards are not the place for it. If you want to bicker and argue, take it to PM. This is not OH, we do not tolerate the same behaviors they do there. I have already had one complaint about your posts therefore all these petty issues need to go to PM.

That is the source, take it or leave it. Why do YOU suppose Contreras left Betancourt? Why do YOU suppose he practiced out of there to begin with? He's your doctor, you should know, right? Are you suggesting they would give out PERSONAL INFORMATION on their previous employees to anyone that asks???? Oh hell yes! Can't have it both ways, LiveInPhx. Either they have ethics or they don't.

Here we go again with Dr. Billing's patients and we can only have good care if we stay in the US. I'm truly sorry that your $21,000 surgery only gives you 2 years of nutritional help. I'm getting sick of these Dr. Billing's patients coming to the board claiming that the only way to get a good surgery is to stay in the US. This is a mantra that is growing old quickly. Let's do a comparison of your doctor vs. my doctor in Mexico. Experience: Billings: 150 sleeves My doctor: 600 sleeves Staple line experience (lap bypass and sleeves): Billings: 450 staple lines My doctor: 1,100 staple lines Nutritional support without added cost: Billings: Covered for 2 years, then you pay. My doctor: Lifetime at no charge. Psych support: Billings: I believe two years are included but I am not sure My doctor: PhD available for life. No charge. Hospitalization: Billings: None, this major surgery is done on an outpatient basis. You wake up and they tell you to go home. My doctor: Three nights in the hospital. Cost: Billings: $20,850 My doctor: $9500 total package cost. Please explain to me again the benefit of staying in the US? Exactly what would I have received for an extra $11,350 that I would have paid had I gone to your doctor? Do you realize that two people could be sleeved with actual hospitalization in Mexico for the cost of one surgery on an outpatient basis with your own surgeon? We disagree that the only way to get a good surgery and be successful is to stay in the US. I sincerely do not believe it is safe to have this particular procedure done on an outpatient basis. Something like 85% of leaks happen within the first 48 hours. If you would have had a leak it would have been discovered at home, not in a hospital. I'm happy to keep pointing out the difference if that is what you wish.

food intake in animal models and humans. The ghrelin hormone is unique in that it requires acylation (the addition of a fatty acid) by a specific enzyme (ghrelin O-acyl transferase, or GOAT) for activation. Originally it was assumed that the fatty acids attached to ghrelin by GOAT were produced by the body during fasting. The new data by Tsch?p and his team suggests that the fatty acids needed for ghrelin activation actually come directly from ingested dietary fats. In a departure from an earlier model that was upheld for nearly a decade, Tsch?p says, it appears that the ghrelin system is a lipid sensor in the stomach that informs the brain when calories are available - giving the green light to other calorie-consuming processes such as growing. Tsch?p and his team used mouse models to test the effects of over expressing the GOAT enzyme, or "knocking it out." They found that, when exposed to a lipid-rich diet, mice without GOAT accumulated less fat than normal mice, while those with over-expressed GOAT accumulated more fat mass than normal mice. "When exposed to certain fatty foods, mice with more GOAT gain more fat," says Tsch?p. "Mice without GOAT gain less fat since their brain does not receive the 'fats are here, store them' signal." Tsch?p says that although his study can't be immediately extrapolated to humans, recent human studies at the University of Virginia measured (separately) active and inactive ghrelin concentrations. Those studies showed that during fasting, active ghrelin levels were flat, but during the presence of fat from foods, ghrelin levels peaked with meals as previously described. Tsch?p says these human studies support the new model for ghrelin. "Our GOAT studies in mice offer an explanation of what could have been happening during the longer fasting periods in these human studies," Tsch?p adds. "Without dietary fats, ghrelin peaks remain inactive and don't affect storage of fat. "We are particularly interested in how ghrelin may be involved in the rapid benefits of gastric bypass surgery," says Tsch?p. "This powerful obesity therapy frequently reduces appetite and improves metabolism before substantial weight loss occurs. Intriguingly, this procedure causes food to bypass the stomach and gut sections that contain GOAT/ghrelin cells, which, based on this newly described model, would prevent ghrelin activation." Notes: The study was supported by the Leibniz Graduate College and by the National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Co-authors include Paul Pfluger, PhD, and Ronald Jandacek, PhD, both from the University of Cincinnati; Henriette Kirchner, graduate student from the University of Cincinnati and the German Institute of Human Nutrition; Annette Sch?rmann, PhD, and Hans-Georg Joost, MD, PhD, both of the German Institute of Human Nutrition; and Traci Czyzyk, PhD, John Hale, PhD, Mark Heiman, PhD, Jesus Gutierrez, PhD, Patricia Solenberg, PhD, and Jill Willency, PhD, all from Lilly Research Laboratories. Source: Dama Kimmon University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center

You asked for the source, I gave it to you.

You had one post removed due to attacking a member under your other ID. That is against the rules as was explained to you before you left the forum in a huff saying you would never return. If you follow the general rules of the forum Now, you refer to posts that have been edited. I am aware of one post. Please provide evidence that I have edited more than one of your posts.

Very true! That's why the better Mexican doctors have full time nutritionists... free for life. It comes with the price of surgery for us too. I just wish US doctors didn't charge for this service beyond 2 years. Are you back on track now with nutrition? Exercise? There is a great study I just posted here: http://verticalsleevetalk.com/research-statistics/183-what-exercise-benefits-exercise-must-read.html Remember, exercise and your food plan keeps the pounds off.

Call Betancourt's office and ask them. They are very free with the info. Go to the source. And no, I have not made other references that Betancourt's office fired other surgeons. That seems to be the problem, they don't when it is necessary.

Welcome back Phx, thought you left us on the other ID.

I do not know one way or another about the cancer clinic (not really well respected, it is on a US govt watch-list) but Contreras was even fired from betancourt's clinic.

Make it look like you! But be warned, it will give you a fat, short, squatty body. Just hold something large in front of your body to hide it. ;o) Make Your Avatar at Osoq.com It's kind of fun, give it a shot!

YES! That's it! LBT has the good one, WE are the good forum ;o) and we have the sucky PMs, the 2nd example.