the best me

This makes me wonder. I started taking Singulair a few weeks before my surgery and it helped alot, especailly this time of year. I don't get asthma out of the blue, during exercise, etc but when I am exposed to allergens (dog dander, pollen, etc) I get wheezy in my chest, as well as general snottiness and dry itchy eyes. So the Singulair was helpful. I took my last pill the day before my surgery and haven't had any since. I'm feeling it. AND I have had trouble with swelling of my stoma, to the point of not being able to swallow my own saliva (this happened about a week out from surgery) It's improving daily, but I am not eating the menu of other Bandsters my "age". Still taking it very slow, so as not to irritate things. So, I wonder how much of this swelling problem is related to my allergies? I need to use my inhaler about once every other day at bedtime. I have the snotties, a bit of cough, and mucus, I'm just really feeling the allergies... Today, I will take my Singulair, even if it says do not crush (I'm taking NO chances of getting stuck) and if it's better I'll let you know. Of course, it may take a few days. It just really makes me wonder if my allergy situation is not helping my swelling/tightness situation? I'm curious about other answers here!

My port is above my waistline, below my left ribcage, pretty well out of the way for me except when I have my son too high on my hip. Gotta watch out for little squeezy knees! My doc uses the smaller port, he said. Don't know if it's officailly called the mini-port. But the area where you can inject the fill is the same size as the "old" Inamed port, just the actual piece is smaller in diameter. It's apparently the newer model? That's how it was explained to me, and we actually saw both ports and were able to compare. Not that big of a difference, really. Hey, Jamie, isn't it fun to come back to these threads and actually have an opinion/response, SOMEthing to say? I can't believe I have a port!!! I have a port! wow! Hey Suburban, I have a little hill but I'm only two weeks out from surgery, so don't know if that has something to do with it. Plus mine is in my left belly, not at my bra-line so...keep us posted on how that goes, it's very interesting! Hope you get more responses to that!

Wow girl, you are ready!!!! I knew you could get in quick, but wow!!! You will do just fine there alone. I was very happy to have my sister with me, but there are other bandsters and their friends/family with them there and you will be well taken care of. You will feel safe at the hotel and have a ride everywhere you need to go. I wouldn't personally travel out in the city alone during any "down" time. But you will have plenty to keep you busy! Have a great trip! Don't be overwhelmed, it will be fine. Can't wait to hear how it went! Keep us posted, OH! and add your name/date to the April Bandsters list!

Dr Kuri, Tiajuana, Mx. $8950.00 plus the cost of two round trip plane tickets at just under $700.00 (good price, got a friend in the biz!) plus tips/spending maybe $150.00. www.beliteweight.com Thumbs-up experience. Fills are free for life plus $70 for the flouro. Transportation/accommodations not included for fills.

I'll be glad to call you Cowgirl Megan, and you should change your whatchmacallit under your screen name to Cowgirl Megan too!

Hey Katie, are you going to CA for job training for your new job? or is this a "pleasure" trip? take good care of that port infection...we don't need any more gaping wounds around here! Glad you got the antibiotic. Keep it clean and dry. Take your sweet time on solids...it will be there later. Heal up first. I am SO glad you are healing up now. You had a rough go of it in the beginning. It's neat to see you bouncing back so well! Have fun in California!

My husband was leery at first..a little scared about a surgery, but then when I showed him some of the stuff on LBT, he began to see that this might be something that would work well for me. After watching me struggle all throughout our marriage, and knowing that the weight I did manage to lose for our wedding was Diet Pill induced, he began to come around. His comment: I know I don't understand all this diet stuff, and why losing weight is so hard. I think this will work. And then the Mexico factor...my insurance excludes the Lap Band, and so I did some price checking, and Mexico was the way for us to go. My husband was confident about Dr Kuri's experience and that was reassuring for both of us. He saw two things...my research (relentless) and the fact that noone hates their band, even the ones who have had problems and difficulties. He walks around saying "I Love My Band!!!" because he sees people write this all the time on LBT! Success speaks volumes. Now he's a great cheerleader for me, a bit of a worry wart, but very supportive and hopeful. It's great!

Congrats Ramona!! Put your name on the May Bnadsters list! The doc decides which size band to put in when he gets in there. There are 4 sizes...I don't have the llist handy but it's posted in here somewhere, maybe do a search on Band Sizes? Your doc will have your pre-(if required) and post-op diets, perhaps he has them on his website? Or call and request it. I got mine as a part of my info when I scheduled my surgery. I crush mine but I'm only 2 weeks post-op. Down the road most folks can take the smaller pills no prob, just wash them through the pouch to the lower stomach so you won't irritate the stoma with meds sitting there. I'm taking liquid Centrum, but I have read other recommendations for liquid Vitamins...someone may post here, too. Good Luck and congratulations!!!

hey Crazy Cowgirl! Is your friend here, does she have a screen name? If so, I'll add her to the list so we can cheer her on. You need to find the May Bandsters list (if you haven't already) and DebbieDo will add your name. It's under the Support Forum also. Happy researching! And Welcome!

Welcome Joe! Sounds like you are on the right path! Keep researching, there is SO much info here, just about any question you can get answered just by reading! But that doesn't mean you shouldn't post, too! Have a great day in class and we'll look for your post tonight. Again, welcome!!

Hey Justme! Welcome! First do a couple of things. Go to the Introduction Forum and post a new thread with an intro, and don't leave out the good stuff, wer'e nosey! You will get a much better response there than posting here, and everyone will want to say hello to you! Then, find the "May Bandsters" thread under the Support Forum and post a reply at the end of that thread and give your date and doctor...DebbieDo will add you to the list and we can give you the encouragement you need as your date gets closer. You came to the right place here at LBT. You will find what you need as soon as you can find your way around in her...don't worry, we'll help you. Send me a Private Message if you want to...double click on my screen name and click "send a private message to the best me" and the form will come up. I will be glad to help in any way, as will anyone else. Don't panic yet, you have plenty of time to research and ease your mind. Do those things and you will be on your way!

Oh how FUN!!! None of the expense, none of the day to day responsibilities, and all of the joy and hard work of caring for horses, all in one volunteer spot just down the road!!! I LOVE the smells of horse barns, mucking the stalls, fresh hay, fresh feed and water, and wait until you clean a horse's hooves! You get that little scraper thing and stand beside it and run your hand down it's leg and coax it to lift it's hoof for you...it's scary and satisfying work. You will learn so many new things by doing this, and it's awesome! dirty! and gratifying exercise!! Forget riding...give me the work part of it! AHHH...Good for you, Megan! What a hurdle you jumped! I'm so happy for you!

I can't believe it. Ya know, you have been posting here so long it seems like your'e already banded!!! How did I miss you on the April Bandsters thread? Gotta tap me on the shoulders sometimes. And you did, thanks. You make it sound so romantical!!!!! Have a great trip! We'll be thinking of you!

Same here crossing over the border. I did hear that after Jan 1, 2006, pasaporte required.

Hey Susie, I know the Park Road/Selwyn/Queens area fairly well. I can drive all over through there and get to where I need to go, but don't ask for directions! I couldn't tell you for a nickle. It's grown up alot in there, so I'm not familiar with Selwyn Village but that's a really NICE area, lots of old trees, shady, something new in the middle of the "Matthews" of the 1940's. Park Road Shopping Center has been around longer than me, that's for sure! I moved to the Charlotte area in 1975, I was 10. Grew up in SE Charlotte. I used to be in Social Work, in a sense. I don't have an MSW, or even an SW! (mine's a BS) but I worked for a private non-profit that contracted group home sevices with Meck County. I was a Program Mgr. Did you work for the County? Sorry for the walk down memory lane everyone! lol Hey, Vinesqueen is a full time student, too. She has a full scholarship (woohooo) so she's purdy smart. (And she took out her birthday but I'm pretty sure she's 41) so she's got you beat in the oldest student in the class syndrome. hehe! And I'm with pink, we'd all love some perspective on counseling for emotional eating. Let us know how that goes! Very interesting! You'll be a nice addition to LBT!

AAWWWW Bandit!!! Your getting banded on my birthday! Isn't that neat?!!! Congratulations!!! WooooHoooooooooo!

Hey Longhorn! Glad to see you made it here! Wow, you must be smart!! lol What a busy life! Will you go alone to Austin? Or will you take the family? What are you studying in grad school? I saw that you are going to the Durham get-together...that's cool, I wish I could make it. I hope you have a good time. welcome to LBT!

Okay girls, my trauma/drama is ending and I'm getting along being banded. I have not added near what I could according to my menu, but I'm keeping it easy for now, pureed vegetable soup, broths, Boost, and water. Seems to do me fine for now. I promise to check in here more often, and I do when I see a new post, but I feel like I'm all over the place right now and maybe needing an LBT break? Did I say that? It might be time to switch my concentration to my home...just for a day or two? Anyhow, I'll do the best I can to stay offline for a bit until my home is in order. It's been quite a ride so far. Will check in soon! kathy

I struggled with the guilt of not being able to do it on my own. I was so tired of trying and failing. WLS is not for everyone, and neither is the band, although I think it's the ONLY wls option for me. My personal opinion is that it's the best wls option. It's adjustable, reversible, and less invasive. I have been banded for less than two weeks, so my "why it's been good for you" is tough to answer. So far, it's just been hard. Not bad hard, just a hard post-surgery. Others sail through a little better than I have. My attitude is, if you are skinny, your opinion really doesn't count much to me because you have no idea my struggle. So don't talk, just respect my decision. If you are Obese, you understand a little better but you still have to respect my decision. I'm sorry if I dissappoint you and "take the easy way out" If you can do this without surgery, go for it. More power to ya. Happy for ya. Great for you, really! But I'll be 40 this year and my children are young, my weight loss struggle will tarnish my best years if I don't do something. So I did, and I own my choice. Now when I work at it, I'll actually get somewhere! I'm excited about next year. And next year I'll have a better answer for you. Next year my cholesterol will be normal, my blood pressure will no longer be borderline high, my joints won't ache, I'll breathe better, sleep better, have more energy, feel confident, look on the outside as great as I feel on the inside, and be in a place where I can actually grow, emotionally, physically, spiritually, rather than stay stuck in this same old thinking about myself that my big ole fat body keeps jerking me back into. I'm really looking forward to it. There are lots of other threads in here along the same lines, maybe try a Search on some of the words in your post, see what comes up. Good Luck to you. It's wild ride if you decide to take it!

Curves are IN! My DH doesn't want me too skinny. He said something about loosing my butt (as if!) and I promised him that I could weigh 110lbs and I'd still have a big butt. HA! As for me, I see me at my goal weight 145, but would be happy just to be below 160 comfortably. This is still very curvey and womanly, important to both me and DH.

I think referred pain is a good way to describe my occasional back pain. I was banded less than two weeks ago, and I have the same back pain feeling, and assumed it was from the gas during surgery, or the referred pain, such as you described. However, my pain is not sudden. Mine is more constant, sometimes fine and other times a bit more uncomfortable, as if I need to "pop" my back and stretch the shoulder and neck muscles. I would do what you did and post it here first, see what comes back, but it's worth at least a phone call to the doc? Let us know if you find out anything else! Oh! And Manny, I have this back pain and I know for sure I don't have slippage. I had an Upper GI done and my band doc told me all was well, no slippage. So yes to backpain and no to slippage for me. Hope that helps.

I think if it won't go down it's got to come up. And I think you are supposed to switch back to liquids for a day or two and let the area heal up from being aggravated, or you'll PB again. Old habits die hard, but a good ole PB is a good lesson to cause us to remember, huh? Sorry 'bout that. I know it's yucky and uncomfortable and even scary. 30 minutes is a long time to be dealing with that! Be good to your band and let things heal.

Or go to the Wish Center in Chicago! Really, some folks just can't do the MX thing and if it's not for you, The Wish Center sounds like a great option! You can PM me here...just click on my screen name, then click Send a Private Message and the form comes up. It's not an IM, so we can't go back and forth like that, but I will get your message and reply. Here, I'll PM you and let you see!

Welcome Longhorn! Glad to have you...have fun reading and searching. Judy posted something about a bandster get-together in Durham. You might be interested in attending, I'm sure she could help you out (judybellyband, listed above). Also, if you haven't yet, post an introduction in the introduction forum so we can all say hi to you...more folks will read it there, and give all the scoop...wer'e a nosey bunch! Glad you are here!!!

You will do fine Jorjet, if you weren't nervous, I'd be worried. Believe me, I understand everything you are thinking and feeling, so does every banded person here, I'd be willing to bet. You did your homework? You understand what you are getting into as best you can? You feel confident you can make this work? Only you can decide, but you can cancel at the last minute if you must. Think about how you would feel if you did cancel or postpone. Would you be relieved and have peace about that? If so, don't do it. If the thought of not going through with your band surgery makes you even sicker than your nervousness...move forward and it will be over in no time. And yo will be banded!!!! Good Luck tomorrow. Best to you and keep us posted please.