marcar35

Hello Jetlagjane: Tomorrow you'll be joining the 'banded' world. Best of luck to you! I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers and please let us know how you're doing ASAP. :clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2:

Hello andreerichards1: You've made a very wise decision in staying in Canada for your operation. I may be a little conservative in my thinking but if I were to have complications from the operation (don't forget we get general anaesthesia) I would prefer to be at home than either south of the border or Mexico. Furthermore, as already mentioned in a previous thread, if you have a pre-existing condition and you have your surgery outside of the country, you could be in a bit of a bind where the insurance companies are concerned. I know you'll be happy with Dr. C's clinic and I'm really sorry you had such a bad experience at the TLBC. Both clinics have amazing doctors and staff.

Hello Miranda: So glad everything went well and you're feeling great. Here's to the liquid stage....I asked Jill if gin and tonic was considered a clear fluid but no go.. I'm on full fluids and pretty soon I'm sure I'll be floating away....

Thanks Jetlagjane. You'll be the same. Who's doing your surgery?

Hey Miranda: We're thinking about you. How did your surgery go and most importantly how are you feeling?

We lost our beloved pet beagle Luna in October of last year. After going through months of saying "no more pets" because it hurts so much when you lose them we have finally decided to get a new pet....meet Albert he comes home on June 09/07

Mine is a combination of my middle name and last name...yaaaawwwwnnn

All the best to you Miranda. It will be over before you know it and you'll be one happy camper.

Hello MonicaZ: I know everyone is going to hate me, but I have not had any issues (so far) post-op. The first day I was really drowsy. The second day I was still a bit drowsy but moved around when I was awake. The third day I was great and this is day 4 and I'm still waiting for those awful gas pains in the shoulder everyone talks about. I do have some occasional pain in my stomach which I think is gas but it cames and goes and is quite bearable. I also did not take any painkillers since the surgery. I removed my big bandages today and everything looks great. The other ones come off in approx 6 days. I don't want to jinx it but so far so good.

The Dr. Joffe situation is a bit disturbing and yes I believe such information should be made public but only when it's been proven. Allegations do a lot of damage to people's lives and I don't think that's right. The College of Surgeons and Physicians should post the fact a Dr. is under investigation but should only post details once the allegations have been proven to be either true or false.

Good day to all: I am seriously considering the lapband since I have a lot of weight to lose. I visited both clinics (TLBC and Dr. Colbourn) and I need to make my decision on a clinic soon. For those of you who have been banded - did you find that your own MD tried to discourage you from being banded or where they quite supportive? My nurse at work advised me not to do it since the long-term success rate is not that great vs by-pass/stapling surgeries. Just curious.

I'm currently using the Iso-pro drinks recommended by the clinic. It's actually quite good when mixed with milk and OK when mixed with water.

Thank you LeslieLee. Like yourself I need to get through this month while I have dreams of a succulent steak :welldoneclap:. All kidding aside, so far so good for me as well. I'm enjoying my broth and today I've found out from Maral at TLBC that I can add a little bit of parmesan cheese to the broth. Heavenly! Best of luck to you as well.

This is it everyone. I get banded tomorrow morning (June 01) at 11:00 by Dr. Yau....:omg:

Doddie63 you are so right in what you are saying and I hope I will be able to stop at 1 cup when I start on solid food. However, at this early stage as we look forward to a brighter future we cannot help looking back to the way it used to be. I do believe most of us who've had this long-term love-hate affair with food feels the same way.

Hello Miranda: Yes, the permanency of the band is daunting. But look at it this way, you'll look and feel great and it will all be worth it! The old way you could pig out but you still remained a big girl. This is what I kept telling myself from the time I booked the surgery right through the blasted cottage cheese diet and even today (day 2 post-op) when I'm starting to get hunger pains. With the band we will not be able to eat as much...so what? Kathy at the TLBC clinic told me that if you wanted a break from the weight loss you could have some of the fill removed until you were ready to resume. Personally, this is great news for me since I do a cruise once a year and I would hate to be sick while on a cruise ship. So when I do my cruise I will have a little of the fill removed so I can enjoy my vacation. That period will be my controlled indulging time.... Take care of yourself, think positive thoughts and your surgery day well arrive before you know it!

Hello JetlagJane: When I went for my consultations, Kathy at TLBC showed me all 3 bands available and told me I could either choose one or Dr. Yau would choose for me. I opted to have Dr. Yau do what he does best. I ended up with the Midband2. I'm not sure if Dr. Colbourn's clinic has a choice of bands, I was only shown the Inamed one when I had my consultation there.

Hello Kwallagirl: Welcome to the banded side. Keep us posted on your progress. Aren't the gas pains a real treat?:heh:

Hello Miranda: Believe me I was really nervous (I've never had any type of surgery before) and not knowing what to expect made my fears appear bigger than life. I entered the clinic and everyone did their best to calm me down. Needless to say all my stressing raised my blood pressure and my body temperature. Dr. Yau came in to speak to me and he alleviated most of my fears. When the anesthetician came in he alleviated the rest of my fears. I asked him if he had any complications arise from the anaesthetic and he said that yes he had some but based in my being essentially healthy he did not anticipate any issues. He then went on to explain that if I caused him complications he would have to fill so much paper work that it really wasn't worth it (LOL). He had me laughing all the way to the OR. Didn't get a chance to thank the staff as they were very busy but I did appreciate everything they did for me. When do you go in and which clinic are you using? Best of luck to you.

Thank you ToniTeach. I did have some tea this morning I just wasn't sure if I could. I'll call the clinic on Monday to find out. In the meantime I'll stick to what's listed. Hope your recuperation period is going well. LeslieLee - how are you doing?

Congratulations to you. The 2 months will go by quicker than you expect and pretty soon you'll be joining all of us.

Hello everyone: First of all thank you for all your kind wishes. I am finally banded and after a day of groggyness I am now feeling somewhat normal and ready to tackle the next hurdle in my journey...the liquid diet....can anyone tell me whether we are allowed to have coffee/tea the first week post-surgery? Furthermore, the initial package I received at Dr. Yao's clinic says to stay on clear fluids for 4 days, but the package I got after my procedure says one week. Anybody else see this discrepancy? I cannot believe how good I feel this morning. I haven't taken any pain medication yet! A big thank you to all the ladies in the waiting room at Dr. Yau's clinic on the morning of June 01 who kept my mother company and put up with her limited knowledge of English and patiently explained to her what a good thing this band was. For those of you who were there she was the Italian lady.

Hello everyone and thank you for all your kind wishes. I am now in countdown mode and look at the clock every 5-10 minutes. As mentioned, I don't think I'll get a lot of sleep tonight and I've now managed to chew off all my fingernails - I guess I won't have to worry about removing the nail polish .

Congratulations Jetlagjane!! I'm no pro as my surgery is tomorrow but let me tell you that you won't find a better support group than all the wonderful people on this board. You are so lucky to have such a wonderful husband and partner and he is right we cannot forget that inside we are all beautiful people waiting to come out! As for the diet, I hated it, had many major downfalls and still managed to lose some weight. You will find Jill to be very supportive and she will give you options so that you don't end up choking on the cottage cheese at the end of the 14 days. Best of luck to you and keep us posted. :clap2::clap2::clap2:

Hello LeslieLee - I'm thinking about you and hope you are doing well. Anxiously awaiting news from you.