edistogirl2602

You might try Dr. Ponce in Dalton, GA. I believe he knows some of the Mexico docs and does fills for them. His website is www.gastricbandinstitute.com . He is very experienced.

I am also 5 weeks post op and I just spoke to my doc's office today to schedule my first fill. I have lost 10 pounds and I fluctuate up and down since I started solids. I can eat as much as I could before the surgery. The P.A. that I talked to said that all this is normal and I can get my first fill after Nov. 5th. I wouldn't worry about much weight loss until you get your first fill.

I am not a big coffee drinker either, but when I was banded 3 weeks ago my doc told me that caffiene was a stomach irritant and an appeitite stimulant and that I should have a very limited amount or none. I drink alot of tea so I have switched to decaf.

I was banded a week ago today. Everything has been going well. I have had no hunger except what's in my head. I just started full liquids today. Yesterday I started spotting. I take BCP's and am only on week 2. I was wondering if this happened to anyone else. I know stress can make you spot and I have also heard that estrogen is stored in fat and if you have rapid weight loss it can upset your estrogen levels for a bit. I have lost 10 pounds in this first week. Any thoughts??

Thanks for the info. It has pretty much stopped now. I didn't have to go off any of my meds before surgery. They did give me a shot in my stomach to prevent blood clots though. I have a bruise there that is the size of a baseball. And it's dark purple so obviously my blood didn't clot.

Hey everyone, I got banded on Friday, Sept. 24 by Dr. Ponce in Dalton, GA. It was a great experience. Everyone was so nice and helpful. I am now on my third day of liquids and just starting to realize how much "head hunger" affects me. I am not hungry at all, physically, but my head keeps telling me it's time to eat. Hopefully, that will get better. I just wanted to let you know that I am on the road to a more healthier life. Yahoo!! I'm glad I have a place like this board for support.

Yes, I had the procedure at the outpatient surgery center. It was beautiful and new. I had my surgery at about 1:30 pm and Dr. Ponce was finished by 2:30. I was in recovery in a bed for about an hour and then I got into a chair and they wheeled me to a recovery room. I walked around 2-3 times and drank some Water and left at about 5:30pm. Apparently I was the quickest recovery of the day. It runs in my family to want to get up and go as soon as possible. The staff was wonderful and so was Dr. Ponce and his nurse in the office. Her name is Brooke and she had the band 3 years ago and has lost 164lbs. I would highly recommend him to anyone. They gave me lots of discharge information on my diet and everything else.

I actually don't think one of my cats did the scratching. I have 5 little bumps where the claws went in and my cats don't claw me. They may scratch me if they jump off my lap or something, but they don't poke their little claws in me. I think the culprit was a sweet baby kitty at our local pet store. I can't resist holding a baby kitty and this one got a little scared and gripped me with her claws, hence the 5 perfect puncture marks on me. And not to cause any decention in the group, but I'm not really a Ted Nugent fan. I only know the words to the song because my husband keeps singing it. The only thing I know about Ted is that he is/was the president of the NRA.

Go figure! Twelve days before my surgery and I get Cat Scratch Fever. Ted Nugent anyone! I went to my doc and got some antibiotics and he said it shouldn't delay my surgery. I think the evil forces of wickedness are trying to get me down. Not gonna happen. I'm almost there!

I actually don't feel too bad. What got me concerned was that my lymph nodes under one of my arms were swollen and hurting. Then I got bumps where the cat scratched me and then yesterday I felt like I was getting the flu. I feel much better today, but didn't want to take any chances with my up coming surgery. My husband keeps walking around the house singing the song! Apparently, this is something that is more common in kids than adults. Leave it to me to get it. In case you were wondering, both my kitties are very sweet and didn't mean to scratch me. I'm their mommy and they love me the best.

I can't wait to be in this thread!!

I realized yesterday that I only have 20 days until my surgery. I am so excited and ready. I had and EKG a week ago and on Thursday I had an Upper GI. Can you say chalk milkshake?!? In about a week I'll have my final pre-op labs done and then I'll be off. Yahoo!!

Thanks for the support New Hope. I have been walking for a few weeks now. And I'm drinking lots of water. The hardest part has been not drinking with meals. I have been trying really hard. I keep thinking it might be easier after I'm banded because I won't be consuming as much food and won't need to wash down as much. We'll see.

Girl, leopard is definitely your color!!!

Nice to find you Denise. I am very excited about getting banded. Have you had any problems? I would welcome any advice you can give.

I just discovered this post and even if it doesn't count, I want to vote. I would like a white shirt with red lettering that says "BIG FAT LOSER" in a 1X.

Hey everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I have a date. I will be banded on September 24th in Dalton, GA by Dr. Ponce. I am so excited! The only problem is that when I told my husband tonight, he started in about how I shouldn't do it. How everything is in my head (my food issues) and that the band is not a cure-all. I was so upset. I thought he had finally come around. He knows I won't change my mind and he just doesn't understand how it feels to be 100 pounds overweight. He can eat anything and never exercise and stays the same weight. Anyway, I will not be deterred! I keep trying to tell him how great this is going to be and that in the long run, I will be much healthier and happier. I would really appreciate everyone's support. My 2 best friends are totally supportive, but it is still hard when your hubby isn't.

Thanks for the support Molynn. I can only hope to have as great a success with my weight loss as you. It sounds like you have done great. I am excited about being banded and I know my husband will come around after he sees how positively this is going the effect me.

I am so glad to hear that I can still enjoy popcorn at the movies. It's one of my favorite things. But, I must say, I would rather go hungry than eat carrots or celery. Yuck, yuck, yuck! But you guys go on with your rabbit food .

Hey all you bandsters, I need some advice. I will be banded in 1 month. Should I be changing my diet now (ie. weaning myself off carbonation, caffiene) or should I just blow it out since I only have a month left? What do you guys think?

Thanks for all the great information. I think my common sense was telling me to start easing into the transition now. I will make it easier and probably not so shocking. I have started walking almost every day and I almost always have some kind of liquid in my hand (usually water) so I don't think that will be a problem. I do need to practice chewing more and taking smaller bites. I told my husband he could be sure that I really, really wanted this surgery because I would have to give up carbonated drinks. This is huge because I love, love, love diet coke. But I would give up more than diet coke to have the band. It is going to be better than I ever thought diet coke was. I would greatly appreciate any more info or advice if you guys can think of anything.

Hi Dave. I can't help you with what to bring because I haven't been banded yet, but I will be soon by Dr. Ponce too. Good luck on your journey and I can't wait to hear how it went. Keep us updated.

Unfortunately I am familiar with "Depends." I'm hoping some of that will go away when I get skinnier. Hopefully I will have a date for surgery sometime this week. Yeah!!!

I love, love, love reading all of everyone's posts. I'm kinda new to the board stuff though and haven't learned all the lingo. Could someone please tell me what NSV means? I'm assuming it's something good. BTW, I got my "self-pay packet" from Dr. Ponce's office today and as soon as I fax it in, I can schedule my surgery date. I am so excited. You guys are an awesome inspiration and a great source of REAL information (as well as some just for fun info). You can't live without that. Reading all these hilarious posts reminds me of my best friends and how we laugh so hard together that we wet our pants!

Thanks for the info. I am definitely looking forward to some of those.