La_madam

What about using the doctor you had originally were going to use then use the dr. wich is in network after surgery. Use the more experienced doctorfor the surgery but use the other doctor for fills and aftercare.

Hi Susie, I met you in Dr. Ortiz's office back in July..so glad to see you hear! Great Job on your weight loss. I'm happy to hear everything is going so good for you

Ok Francesca, I nominate you to start a more entertaining thread Here is your chance since you admit to not posting much

Erosion can not be fixed, the band must be removed, erosion means the band is eroding into the walls of your stomach. You could have something as simple as gastritis which is what I had,I had my fill 2.5 ccs removed for 2 months and took peilosec and Nexium and it cleard up, now I have a fill again op 1.5 Does your doctor do your fills under fluoro? If so you will see if there is a chance of erosion under flouro because the liquid flows over the band with possible erosion and with no erosion the liquid flows through the band. An endoscopy will tell you if you for sure if you have either erosion or gastritis. I had the pain in my chest, no vomiting coffee grounds though. I had no sypmtoms of gastritis until my fill was removed. I only found out I had gastritis from an endoscopy my doc did for a different surgery I had to have in April. The symptoms you described are exact symptoms of gastritis. Gastritis is common among bandsters. Its treatable and does not require surgery read this http://www.emedicinehealth.com/articles/10487-3.asp Keep us updated and good luck

These are some thigns I have been able to do since my weight loss Shop in regular size clothing store sit with my legs crossed like a lady instead of a man paint my own toenails Walk up a flight of stairs without getting out of breath waking up i nthe morning withouy my feet aching in pain.

Tuesday 9/20 170 weight waist 34 hips 41 under bra 37

Tuesday 9/20 8:30 am 1 cup of coffee Breakfast 9:00 am 2 poached eggs w/ 1 piece of whole wheat toast no butter with 1 tsp of hollandaise sauce Lunch 12:30 1 cup of leftover chicken & rice casserole Snack 2:30 1.5 ounces of peanuts Dinner 5:00 1/2 salad 1/2 piece of meatloaf 1/2 spiced muffin 4 bites of mashed potatoes

Poodles if you have no problem sticking with a low carb diet, and you need help with portion control, then I think the band would definatley help you

This sounds just like me exceptIm up at 3:45 am Last night I made it through the night for the first time in along time without giving in. What I did after dinner was brush my teeth and the fill up a 1 liter bottle of Water and went to my room, drank the water through out the night. I had to get up 5 times in the night to pee but atleast I did not eat. I stay as far away fro mthe kitchen, Maybe try the teethe brushin and the water. It might help you too

It is most likely your port you are feeling if it is hard and on your side I would bet it is your port It is where mine is located

I'm so happy to hear that..great news

never bothered with baby food, once I was o nthe mushy food stage I ate refried beans, cottage cheese, scrambled eggs, oatmeal..real food you know. Dont waste your calories on baby food when there is such a great variety of mushy foods they are high in sugar and loaded with carbs, you need your protein.

This place is great, it is where I would eat breakfast every morning on every trip I have ever made to NYC, you guys will love it, it is more lively at dinner time with the singing wait staff then in the morning

Do not know if I agree with that... I have a good friend, who is marreid to a wonderful woman, who gives everything to this man, even sexually. They have a nice home , both have good jobs, very happy marriage, 2 beautiful children, he loves her dearly and will never leave her but he just cheats! Period! Always has and always will. I think some men are programmed that way regardless if they are getting everything they need at home. If my husband cheated there is no way in hell I would allow him to blame it one me because of something I was not giving him at home so. I'm a damn good woman who gives 100% to this marriage in every aspect, there is no way the blame would be put on me for his cheating ways. Penni please do not tell me that your man cheated on you because of something he was not getting from you at home.. You do not believe that do you?..You are a damn good woman, his cheating is not your fault In my book if my man is not getting what he thought he needed at home, then Bye Bye, do not let the door hit you in the ass, if he is not happy then move on but do not cheat and do it, be a man and let me know you are unhappy and want to be with other woman and leave gracefully without hurting the other person. I do believe there are men out there who do like heavy woman but it is no reason to cheat because your wife lost weight.

I will gain all of my weight back, so Jack grabbed a muzzle to shut Lisa up so she could not make her 5th wish and then all of a sudden....

Thanks Penni for joining me

I too went to Mexico and used Dr .Ortiz afer Blue Cross/ Blue Shield turned me down. I was able to finance some of my surgery, I paid cash for most of it but financed 2000 of it, Do not igve up! When there is a will , there is a way.

Sorry to hear this Wouldnt this be normal to gain weight with no fill for 1.5 yrs? Was she going in for a fill to prevent more weight gain and this iswhen they detected it? Lisa , remember I got a phone call from a bandster friend who was banded by Ortiz at your house in Vegas, she went to Tj and had an endo to find out she had an absess under her port, no erosion however, not yet anyways, but had to have her port removed and the absessed drained for 5 days..but back in November she had to have her flipped port surgically fixed, wonder if there is any connection? Hmmm.. The sucky part is erosion is a possibility, I wonder if it has anythingto do with the Dr.s who preform it or if some people are more prone to it then others, it is obvious from those I know who have had erosion being a perfect bandster not does not stop it from happening. Erosion is something I worry about everyday of my banded life!

I'm starting to keep track of my daily food intake again, it is the only thing that keeps me accountable..when I have to write it down and I see it on paper it really does help me. I got to do something, I have made a serious vow today to get back on track , so here goes Monday 9/19 5:30 am 2 cups of coffee Breakfast 8:30 2 poached eggs w/ 1 piece of dry wheat toast Lunch 12:30 2 slices of roasted Beef sirloin ( from Boston Market) with mayo and pepper Snack 2:15 Protein shake made with vanilla soy protein powder, 2% milk and 1 banana & ice Dinner 5:00 3/4 c chicken and rice casserole 1/4 cup green beans Snack 7:00 1 handful of teddy grams

Never Never Never!! No Bypass in my furture EVER I know too many people who have had MAJOR complications, one has even died, too many risks for me and I only know of approx 10 who have had it and out of those 10 all have had problems, yes we have problems with the band but minimal compared to bypass, in my opinion., not to mention 2 of the many have gained their weight back plus due to their pouch stretching and their body becoming used to that pouch size. Nope Not Me, No Bypass..

I have been, I weighed for the first time in over a month on Monday when I got home from Vegas. I have started to day with a total dedication to having a good week, so far so good this morning 2 poached eggs with 1 slice of whole wheat toast , Dry no butter. I started taking my Vitamins and Calcium supplements again last week and started to have a Protein shake in the mid afternoon when my cravings kick in. It is the evenings that kill me, seems of late I have been giving into temptation and then feel guilty as hell afterwards. I always have such good intentions but it seems by the end of the day they have all gone by the way side. I'm really going to give it one hell of a shot this week and see if I can do it, no junk, no sweets, no chocolate, no ice cream after dinner. I CAN DO THIS, I CAN DO THIS, I CAN DO THIS

chicken and Dressing Casserole 3 cups of cooked diced chicken 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1 can cream of celery soup 2 cupso f chicken broth 1/2 c melted butter 1 - 6-8oz package of her seasoned dressing mix 1 cup of shredded cheese ( swiss or cheddar) Combine sopus and chicken broth add diced chicken to mixture, add butter to dressing mix Combine chicken mixture to dressing mixture, place in caserole dish bake @ 350 for 35 minutes. Top with cheese during the last 5 minutes.

I use a vanilla powder fro mWal mart, I use skim milk and a Bananna ice & blend or if I use chocolate protein powder, I will add 2 TBSP of peanut butter, skim milk ice & blend very filling

LBT, I'm so sorry to hear this, how devastating for you. The only thing I wouldreccomendis maybe geting some legal advice, were you able to get any of your money back? Even in the US things can hppen like you said, it's not just Mexico where problems arise. Do you not feel comfortable posting who your Dr. was? I ask becasue for any future bandsters who wish to use this Dr. should be made aware of these things happening with a Dr. they are going to use. I would also get a 2nd opinion on if you can ever have the band, you never know he could be wrong. There are alot of great ,experienced lap band surgeons out here who may be able to help you or to atleast get another opinion. This is what I would do, get another opinion before I gave up hope of having the band. Just a thought. Again, so sorry , best of luck to you

Prtoein drinks will help withtheweak part, this is probably why you are so weak, I'm suprised you are not allowed Protein drinks, protein helps to NOT lose lean muscle mass, only drinking clear liquids makes me wonder if you are losing lean muscle mass. Ask your doctor if you can have protei ndrinks, Isopure does make a clear liquid Protein Drink Here is a link where you can order it but they also carry it at GNC stores. http://www.iwantmyvitamins.com/vitamins_viewItem.asp?idProduct=263