susannah

Hey Paul, I have been giving this some thought. I think you really need to have the fill doc situation organized before you commit to surgery in Mexico. I read all the time here about doctors refusing to fill patients that were banded by another surgeon. That happens both in the US and Australia. Sure it may be cheaper in the short term to be banded in Mexico, but if you can't get fills and aftercare it is going to be so hard. Fills and aftercare are vital to the longterm success of weight loss with the band. I think it would be important to think this through carefully before you set off to Mexico. Susannah

Hi Tara, I will try to come to the get together on April 1st. It would be nice to meet other bandits.:biggrin1: Are you guys not looking forward to being surrounded by chocolate at easter time?:eek: :Banane30: Jews are not allowed to eat chametz ( Bread) over passover. Mate that is fine with me coz I can't eat bread anyway! LOL:biggrin1: Susannah

Hey Paul, Gotcha!:Banane30: I wish you lots of luck on your trip to Mexico to be banded. Is the cost of banding too high in the land of the long white cloud also?:eek: If you have private health insurance you only have to pay $3,500 dollars out of pocket here in Australia, and that covers lifetime fills and maintenance ie revision surgery etc. Susannah

Hey Meredith, Can you cook fish on th GF grill without oil etc? I might just get one myself.I could really use some inspiration re recipes etc. Sorry I am not much help. Susannah

Hi, Good question Jacqui. My father is not overweight, my mother has the tendency in that direction but she keeps it in check and would weigh about 70kgs. My siblings are not really obese but they could head in that direction, but they all keep it in check. I was the one to let myself go.:eek: I so wish that I hadn't now. I am ashamed that I got as heavy as I did.:Banane30: Oh well, at least I am working towards getting it off now. Susannah

Gday, Why are you going to Mexico if you live in New Zealand? Would it be better if you have to travel to come to Australia to be banded? There are many Docs here that fill. Susannah

Hey Meredith, Did your sister ever think about getting banded? With you and your dad being banded, your sister could make it a family trifecta!:biggrin1: Susannah

Hi All, Last night I watched The Biggest Loser and one of the contestants lost 9 kgs in one week.:eek: I have lost that in six weeks. Sorry but losing 9 kgs in a week can't be good for you. It is far too much. They have to train for 6 hours a day. No wonder a lot of them have had injuries. That is just excessive. I also think that it is irresponsible to promote that amount of weight loss in a week as healthy. I know it is only for the show, but people watching it may think that is what is required to lose weight.:welldoneclap: This is a lifetime process, and it has to be done in a way that it promotes health and teaches lifetime good habits. Meredith your beloved Big Brother should be back on our screens soon!:biggrin1: Saw the ad for it last night. Susannah

Hi Tara, Boo hoo I can't go. April 1st is the first night of pesach, which is the Jewish festival of passover. Not that I am very religious, but my aunt has already told me that I am going to her house for a seder that night. There will be other days though I am sure. Thanks for the invite. Susannah

Hey Louise, It is ace when your clothes start hanging off!:biggrin1: Well done, it is a real self esteem booster.:clap2: Susannah

Hi Feb Bandsters. This photo of me is from way before I was banded. I can't work out how to crop my post op pic because it is too big. Anyway here I am. I often wonder what some of you guys look like too. I read your posts everyday, even though I don't post a lot. I am pretty involved with my little group of mates over on the Australian local support board here. My feb homies are still important to me though. Susannah

Here I am way before banding. My post op pic is too big to download, and I can't work out how to crop it. Susannah

Hi Belinda, Welcome to our little group here! There are some Doc Nottle patients here also. I was banded at The Avenue Hospital. This is a great place for online friendship and support. Susannah

Hey Bronnie, I reckon going on Optifast, and the liquid diet post op is much easier in warmer weather than winter when you are craving heavier, more substantial food. Look at it that way. As I said before you will be able to have small amounts of bbq food once you are on solids, which will roll around soon. Susannah

Hi Laurend, Professor Paul O Brien is the head of my clinical surgical practice CBS (Centre for Bariatric Surgery). He actually helped design one of the original bands and has published lot of papers on the efficacy etc of the band. I feel in very safe hands being a patient of this practice. www.lapbandaustralia.com Susannah

Hi Rocko, Why don't you explain the situation to your surgeons office, and see what they say. Good on you for taking these twofold steps to regain your helath. It must be so hard for you both giving up smoking and being on the liquid diet right now. Your body will thank you Rocko. All the best with it. Susannah

Hi Kaye, Well done on losing 14 kgs. Like Jack said, at least you didn't put that weight on. Remember losing weight with the band is a slow and steady proposition. Slow weight loss is sustainable weight loss. Also I have found regular exercise really helps your weight loss. If you have this in place most days it will really help to move your weight loss along. Go back to your surgeon and sort out the fill situation also. I wish you lots of success with it Kaye. Let us know how you get on. Why dont you also join us on the Melbourne chat thread. We all support each other on our journey with the band. Your welcome to join in. Susannah

Hey Dionne, Make that a ticker not a dicker! :biggrin1: :biggrin1: Susannah

Hey Dionne, I finally did my own dicker!:biggrin1: I found it much easier with tickercentral.com than the tickerfactory site. How are you cookie? Any news regarding you hub's job move? I reckon a move to Perth would be brilliant. It is the biggest growing city in Australia at the moment. Susannah

Hi Bronnie, Actually I just weighed myself and I am 115 kgs. So I am now down 9 kgs since surgery six weeks ago. I lost 6 kgs on Optifast pre surgery, so that makes total weight loss 15 kgs since I started all together. I can't believe I let myself get so overweight. I am ashamed about that now. As for the barbeque, don't worry. Last weekend my Israeli friends had a barbeque. I ate a small piece of chicken, just chewed really well and eaten slowly. I also had a small amount of hummous dip and some salad, once again chewed well and eaten slowly. You can still eat these things, but just less of them and taken slowly and with care.:biggrin1: The health benefits from having the band are really worth it. As for deserts you could have a yoghurt or a small stone fruit like a yummy white nectarine instead.:hungry: Once you are on solids life will be a bit easier. I wonder how Meredith is going on her pre wedding shopping marathon in Melbourne?:biggrin1: Susannah

Hey Tracey, You should change your screen name to hottiemom! Looking good!:biggrin1: Susannah

Hi Nicole, It is great that you are offering to help someone out. If I were you though I probably would not post my cell phone number on a public board on the internet. Probably best to do it via pm, if you feel you must give it out. All the best Susannah

Hi Angel, I do so hope everything goes smoothly for you with the removal of the band, and the delivery of your baby. It is fantastic that another band doc was willing to help you. I read on this site all the time about doctors refusing to take on other doctor's patients. This especially happens in the United States of litigation! Bronnie, how are you? Try not to stress to much. Swallowing problems in MS only really happen to patients with long standing disease namely primary progressive MS.These patients have a very high lesion load in the brain especially. It is unlikely to occur in patients such as ourselves that have RRMS. Yay I say! I ate my first sushi handroll today!:biggrin1: I chewed it really carefully, and it took me 30 mins to eat, but I feel my life is worth living now. I am not really eating much meat. I am not a vegetarian, I just have never really eaten a lot of meat. I like minced beef and chicken sometimes. I like tofu and fish, and chickpeas and beans, more than meat. Susannah

Hi Karen, Sorry you are in a flare. I hate IV methyl Pred so much. Insomnia, depression etc etc. Hopefully the roids will nuke this latest flare for you. I had a course last year. Regarding the Betaferon, I should maybe think about going on meds, but am so focused on all things lapband at the moment that I have been putting it on the back burner. I keep thinking that I will just deal with attacks etc as they come up. Still thinking. Susannah

Hi All, Angel I have to go back to see the surgeon on the 28th. I guess he will advise me what the go is then, regarding my port. Hopefully I don't have to have revision surgery, maybe they will just have to put all my fills in under fluro. If Port stiches are that easy to come away, how easy would it be for the stiches around the band to pop? I am feeling a little down today. I guess we all have our blue days. Angel why do you think your band slipped? Do you think you will get another one in due course? Susannah