Becky
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Everything posted by Becky
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Hello all, I have an odd question.. I used to snore, quite alot, and quite loud before the surgery.. Well, now my husband is amazed.. I no longer snore.. My husband said that since the surgery i have slept very peaceful and quiet.. I know before surgery they asked if i had sleep apnea. I said "no", my husband felt "yes.".. So the doctors said that they would watch and see how losing some weight helps.. But what surprises me is the fact that it stopped - right after surgery.. Anybody else have this wonderful thing happen to them..
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Hi everyone and thank you so much for the well wishes.. I am getting better, but it is along road.. Some days are better than others.. My husband raised the bed 9 inches.. now we just have to keep from sliding off.. lol.. I was talking with a nurse and she stated that bagged lettuce is a very big culprit of this disease.. they say it's washed 3x's and how do we know that it isn't dirty water.. She also said to be careful with buffets, etc.. Geez, it just makes you wonder.. I thought to myself.. I WASH MY HANDS, I WASH MY FOOD.. but you just never know.. so now i am paranoid.. I'm not sure I even want to eat out anymore, but i'm sure that will pass once this dang infection is over.. I can't tell you how much i appreciated all the help and concern.. makes me feel so much better already.. I wish you all well and great weight losses.. I'll keep ya posted on this story .. Hopefully it should be over.. I called my lapband dr. and told him what i had, but hadn't heard back yet.. I just want the reassurance that it's not the band.. I just want to get back to normal.. bye for now..
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Hi and I am sorry to hear about your friend and cancer.. Mine sickness isn't so bad when you think of all the others out there.. thank you for the tip with the vinegar.. i'll try it.. i don't want this again..
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Hi, I know it 's been awhile.. but since July life has been abit off for me.. I had a terrible bout with supposedly bronchitis.. I went to 3 different doctors along with my own and not one ever took an x-ray and they just put me on antibiotics for weeks at a time. I was running a fever of 102.. couldn't believe it.. the month goes by and i am feeling like CRAP.. then i start throwing up dried blood.. Scared the crap out of me.. I started thinking i blew my band out from all the throwing up. I called my band dr. and he said get to emergency right away. i called my regular dr. and she said the same thing.. I go into the hospital and I have pneumonia. Thank you very much, but i also have a terrible case of ACID REFLUX.. I hadn't had this at all since my surgery in dec.03 NOW, I still have the reflux and i had blood work done and i have helicobactor pylori infection in my stomach.. It's the mucous lining in the stomach.. I need to call the lapband dr. and see if it has anything to do with the band.. I am now on a PREV PAC that is to kill the infection. It's nasty. But my regular dr. said all the acid reflux pills in the world wouldn't work since i have this infection.. They tested my blood and found it postitive.. sorry for the rambling. But i have been so sick since July and I don't want the band to be the culprit.. So hopefully these pills will do the trick. When i went into the hospital i had to see my lapband dr.and they removed all the saline. I now have it filled again. I have lost over 75#. I thought it should have been more since i was so sick. guess i was eating comfort food.. lol.. I just wondered if anyone else has had this problem.. Hope all is well with everyone out there..
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Hi everyone, thank you for the ideas and thoughts.. I just want to tell you that last night we ate alittle late.. I hate that, but anyway, i managed to drink about 24oz of water before i went to bed.. I was so afraid i was going to do the gagging and acid reflux thing.. Well , i slept on 1 pillow and and i slept through the night with NO PROBLEM.. So I must not be emptying my pouch before i get to bed.. It was wonderful.. Guess it's true, PUSH THE WATER.. thanks again.. Sleeping well in California..
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Hi, I don't want to alarm you, but please see your doctor... Also you may want to have an x-ray.. I had severe pain on my side and it continued .. I had an x-ray done and my tubing had snapped off the port and was jabbing my insides.. Please get an x-ray and see a doctor.. It may be nothing, but thats what mine was.. Good luck and hope it's nothing..
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thank you for the response.. I'll give it a few days and see how it goes.. I think I'll stay away from the watermelon for awhile.. It's odd , since I have been banded on 12/29/03 and so i pretty much know the routine, but this last fill, maybe too tight.. I surely don't want to damage my esophogus.. that would be awful.. thanks again Banded: 12/29/04 The New Program/Huntington Beach beginning weight: 292 now: 227 goal: under 200 for now!! my port snapped in April and had to have a 2nd surgery. but all is fine now..
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Hi all, I have a silly question.. I had a fill a week ago.. All is fine.. I know I have good restriction.. but......... I go to bed at night and I get heartburn or acid reflux or something. .. I start this annoying coughing.. then later on in the night it's like i am choking or something.. Well, last night I woke up 3 different times coughing.. and i knew i had coughed up something.. Hell, I didn't know what it was, i caught it in my hand and started to think, oh my god, what is it.. I ran to the bathroom turned on the light and there it was.. a watermelon seed.. (of course, this is from a seedless watermelon).. anyway, I did this 2 other times.. I thought my stomach was empty, I try to sleep kinda sitting up just to be sure.. Is anyone else having a hard time sleeping.. i don't usually cough up stuff.. . I don't have allergies.. there is no drainage.. so I just don't know.. I keep water by me bed to drink through the night. i didn't think that would hurt in the pouch at night.. Help me.. Other than that, I'm feeling great.. I've lost 65lbs.. so far!!! Congrats to all of you bansters who are losing right along with me..
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Hi, I'm at 2cc's.. I only have a 4cc band , so i'm 1/2 full .. I will go through archives and see what has been posted.. thank you for the response.. I will TRY to drink more water before bed.. it's hard , i have to sip., no gulping for me.. drink, burp, . you know the routine..i'll keep you posted..
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oh yes, i forgot.. I also eat an ice cream at night.. diet of course.. anyway, it seems to make me have uneasy nights also.. I don't know' if its the dairy or what.. I try to eat it early enough in the evening, but i get this annoying cough , i will usually get up and take a couple tums to settle the heartburn.. I hadn't had this trouble until the last fill.. I know the fill before this was restrictive, but the dr, gave me another 3cc's .. any ideas, suggestions.. thank you in advance..
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I am so glad that you are on the road to recovery.. You have been through so much.. My prayers and thoughts are with you.. You are such an inspiration to all of us here.. You are the wise one!!! I wish you a speedy recovery and everything is going to be alright.. Weight loss included.. !!! Keep the faith..
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Hi everyone..Well, I just got home from the hospital.. I went to see my dr. with the x-ray and i was in surgery less than 3 hrs from seeing him.. My port was there but the tubing has literally snapped or broke off.. The tubing was laying in my stomach with a rather sharp point and that is what was giving me all the pain.. It was rubbing against the peritinum and that is painful.. I can't believe the dr. who took the x-ray said i had strained a muscle. So be careful.. I didn't know if my bladder was falling out, my appendix had ruptured or my intestines were all screwed up.., all from this piece of drooping tube.. Surgery went fine.. they only had to do 1 hole and then the new port and connected me up.. much simplier than the original surgery. I had paid out of pocket for my first surgery and then i HAD TO PAY FOR THIS ONE.. I am supposed to send my receipts and everything to the company that made the band and let them know it was defective.. I hope they reimburse me.. this was not my fault.. Has anyone else had to come up with the funds and wait for reimbursement.. I guess the hospital staff are going to help me with this.. That is the only thing that pissed me off.. But i guess i would do it again.. Thanks for all your words of support.. I hope this is port is going to stay put.. lol.. Oh yea, since this WAS NOT ELECTIVE surgery, i was wondering if i shouldn't submit to my own insurance.. as well as the company who made the band.. I'm alittle confused on this issue.. Anyone who can help me, I would really appreciate it. Gonna rest now.. thank you again.
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Elizabeth, It wasn't at the port site, it was like my bladder was falling out.. I kept feeling these sharp pains and then it would work side to side.. I can't tell you the pain.. I doubled up all the time.. But it wasn't at the port. Sounds like the best idea is to talk to your doctor.. Exercising may have brought that on.. My port is stitched to the muscle and so i know i would feel it.. Good luck and hope it's nothing..
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Hi all, Well I had my checkup since my 2nd surgery and all is great.. I lost 7lbs. in 2 weeks.. I feel that is pretty good.. Now it's a total of 54lbs gone forever.. YAHOO!!.. Both the doctor and the Inamed corp have been contacting each other, so I have submitted my bills and hopefully remimbursement will follow soon. I want to thank you all for the words of encouragement.. I just hope the company will be fair about all this.. At this point I have to put my trust in them.. I'll let you know how things work out.. We want these bands to remain FDA approved and we want our insurance companies to start paying for these surgeries..
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Just want to touch base with you all.. I"m so greatful for all the information I have been receiving.. Big Dog's wife, I can't believe you lived with that pain for a year.. that is awful.. There is no way I could have gone another week, much less a year.. I am so sorry to hear that. I go see my dr. tomorrow for a checkup and fill.. I have deceided NOT to get an attorney for this case... I have talked with the INAMED Corp. myself and they seem to want to work with me. I told them that IF things don't work out as I feel they should, then at that point I will bring a lawyer into play.. She told me that this WILL NOT be along drawn out affair and that they want to settle.. I told her that I had some information where you (Inamed Corp) would only pay for the device and not the surgery.. She said each is on a person to person basis.. So we will see what happens.. I will let you all know , once I know.. But if they want to stay approved by the FDA they need to keep us all happy.. !!!! Also, I had gotten a letter from my insurance company that I had been denied for reimbursement for the 1st surgery since it was experimental.. and that I could appeal... Well I told this to the peron at Inamed and they said that they encourage people to appeal so that the insurance companies know that there are other options out there and not as expensive and invasive as the gastric by pass.. Sorry this is so lengthy, but I'm trying to give you the facts and what's happening.. Sssoooooooooo!!! Wish me luck.. and I hope WE ALL GET REIMBURSED.. this is a product liability, not personal error. I'll keep you posted.. Hope all of you are doing well.. bye:)
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Chantel, did your insurance company pay the bill or did the INAMED pay for the costs.. ??? just curious..
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Yes, my doctor informed me about the "old batch " i guess it was prior to 1997 or so.. I don't remember... He also said that INAMED picked up the tabs for the surgeries . My doctor said that I have the new model and that this is the 2nd time he had seen this , and so I am hoping that they will cover the costs.. I was reading there brochere and they explain what can happen, but it shouldn't happen and they should cover.. Lets all hope that they stand behind there product..
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Hi everyone, Thank you for the words of encouragement.. I am sorry to hear this happened to Big Dog's wife.. Did you get reimbursed or did you have a great insurance company?? The manufacturer of the band is INAMED... i sure hope they stand behind there product.. The company is based here in Santa Barbara, Ca. My insurance company is Blue Shield HMO and they are real stinkers, but I'm going to see what can be done. I have to talk to my attorney today and see how things are going.. I want to be fair about this.. I'm not out to get rich.. But I just don't want this happening to alot of others.. and I surely don't want to have this be defective again.. I like the band and I would do it all over again.. I would recommend it to my friends, it has done alright by me.. I have along way to go , but at least i know there is a light at the end of this tunnel. I have notified the INAMED CORP. myself already by email..so we'll see if I get a response.. Thanks for listening and I'll let you all know how it turns out.. thanks for caring and sharing..
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Well I went for my fill yesterday and low and behold, couldn't get the job done.. The doctor tried for over a 1/2 hr. and it just wasn't working.. I had written in earlier posts that I was having some abdominal pain/groin pain.. Well I went to my doctor here and they took an xray.. Everything looked fine, he felt I had just pulled a muscle.. But there was all this tubing showing up .. I told him I had the band.. I thought my apendix was rupturing , it was pretty painfu.. So my fill Doctor is asking me to fill him in . So now I go back next Friday and they are going to check this x-ray I have and then do a x-ray (floro) . Doctor feels the worst case scenario will be that they have to do surgery again.. He is hoping that it's just my port and that they can do that with a local anesthic(sp). I had tried to read back on some others who had leaks and what symptoms they had.. I couldn't find any that sounded like mine.. I know the doctor asked me, can you eat bread and beef with no problem?, I said YES. He said you definetly need a fill.. This would have been my 3rd fill.. Sorry this is so long, but I am sure hoping I don't have to go through the surgery again.. I WILL, but hope it can be quickly.. I only lost 2 lbs this month. that was another indication something was wrong.. Well good luck everyone else.. I'll be back up to par in no time.. I hope!!!:
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Hi, I was banded 12-29-03 and i have had 2 fills.. Go for my 3rd on April 9th.. Anyway, this may sound stupid, but I have had alot of abdominal pain lately.. My last fill was March 5th.. This has only been going on for alittle over a week or so. I don't know why!!.. It's not the port, but sometimes it seems like it's on the opposite side.. I have gone to more soupy, soft foods to see if that will relieve it.. I feel fine, and it doens't last all day.. It seems to happen a meal .. But sometimes i wake up with a twinge.. I don't know.. I know some of it is gas! LOL! Sometimes it can be pretty painful making it hard to stand up or move.. Anyway.. I was going to ask the doc, but I wondering if anyone else has experienced this.. Maybe i eat too fast, maybe too much food.. Can anyone shed some light on this.. Thank you!
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It's me again.. It almost feels like a muscle spasm or something like that.. I just don't know..
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Thank you for the info.. but I already had my gall bladder taken out.. So I know it's not that.. It seems to happen after I eat, maybe 20 mins. after I've finished.. I don't know if it's the food working it's way down or what.. I will be asking if it doens't go away.. I thought maybe I strainer myself by lifting something to heavy , but i don't think so.. Anyway, thank you.. It's not all the time, thats what 's odd.. I find if I don't eat much , then i don't seem to have the problem at all or very little.. ODD..
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Hi again, I know about the NOT FEELING the restriction.. There seems to be many days that i don't. It depends on what i eat.. I have not been making good food choices either.. Sometimes i find myself going back to some of my old habits.. AARGH!!!!! But it seems like meat (chicken, pork,)they will let me know i have restriction, but eating fish, that seems to go right through.. I can eat a whole can of turkey chili, (that worries me).. I don't know.. I guess it's working, but I want ALL FOODS to let me know, not just the meat.. I know it's hard.. but we all have to hang in there.. at leat we'er LOSING and not gaining.. Better days ahead...
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Hi all, Well, I just had my 2nd fill.. Was banded on 12-29-03. I have lost a total of 46lbs.. I am so jazzed. I had only lost 10lbs since my last fill 4 weeks ago, but i feel that the tool is doing the job. My dr. STILL had trouble with finding the access port.. thank goodness they deaden the area.. He was poking and i was laughing.. Finally made it.. I now have 2cc's.. he was only going to go for a half cc, but after all the hassle of finding the right spot, he opted for a full cc.. I could stll drink fine and eating is going fine also..Good luck to everyone out there. I go back in 4 more weeks for another fill.. . I had heard that if you lose TOO MUCH weight in a months time or so that the dr. won't do the fill. I was wondering how much weight that would be.. I have a 4 hr. drive to get to my fill dr. Which my husband and I don't mind because it's so pretty in Newport Beach.. It's a mini-vacation. Geez, I'm babbling.. Good luck all..
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Hi Patty, I pretty much eat what i want.. I will eat a scrambled egg for breakfast and a couple pieces of sausage.. 1/2 and apple or orange for a snack(if i'm hungry).. sometimes i'll have 2 eggs.. I love the eggbeaters, and it's turkey sausage or lite sausage.. On the weekends i'll have real eggs.. Lunch will consist of cottage cheese with fruit or salsa, 1/2 cup to a cup.. in the afternoon i'll eat my other 1/2 of fruit.. Then for dinner it's meat, any kind, veggies, and then maybe alittle potato.. there are days i eat (it seems) alot more.. I walk 3-4 days a week for 1 hr. Doesnt' seem like much.. I have a fugdgebars at night for a treat.. (50 calories.) The nutrionist told me not to count calories, weigh or anything like that, but YEARS of dieting, it's hard to not think about how many i'm eating.. the weight will come off.. I go for my 3rd fill on April 5th.. we'll see how it goes.. Good luck and don't give up.. Maybe your not eating enough.. I know we're all different, just by reading all the responses on this site.. Keep the faith, it will work. keep me posted..