vickie6866

I was banded in 07/07, and have had several fills and unfills since then. I had to had a complete unfill in 12/07 and then I went for a large fill in 02/08 and my port was very hard to hit. I had a large size fill but still didn't have the restriction that I needed so I tried to have another fill but was unable to access my port. I have never had a fill under fluoroscopy because in my rural community lapbands are not understood much. The nearest provider is a 4 hour drive and several hunderd dollars out of pocket to do this. If I can't get a fill the normal way and soon I will have to round up the money and make the trip. Could my port have flipped over? It is close to the skin and I can feel it but it feels the same as before. I am just stressing out and need some reassurance from you vets out there.

When I was unfilled in Dec. it was because I was scheduled for surgery in late Jan. and the doctor wanted me to do this so I could get max. nutrition in the pre and post-op days for proper healing. I didn't have any burning with the refill, and I had 2.75cc(was what I had before unfill)put back in my 4cc band. Before with this amount I had max. restriction and was lossing weigh at about 2 pounds every week or so, now I only notice a little restriction in the early morning hours and it is only then if I am eating and eat normal bites and at the speed a non-bander would. I thought my port might have flipped because now it feels more harder and closer to surface than before, but that also might be inpart due to weight loss. I have had very easy fills and unfills up until now and I am beginning to freak out. I live in a rural area of southeastern ky and had my band place in Mexico. I am going to try to start going to Dr. Trace Curry in Ohio for my post-op fills once I figure out if he will take me as a patient and what the cost of fills and fluro for the first time is.

It is that dreaded time of the years and I have a question about my taxes. When I found out that a lap-band was very hard to get on my insurance I went to Mexico(07/2007) and got mine as a self pay. Can I claim this medical expense ($7250) on my federal and states taxes? Any advice would be great. Thanks in advance for any and all help.

Was your placed in Mexico or the states. Were you ever questioned about the amount and what it was for?

My total payment to the doctor was $7200, and then my expenses were a one night hotel fee which was around $90 and my airfare which was around $400. My over all experience was great on a scale of 1-10 it was an 11, and something that I would do again in a minute. :bounce:

Had my lap band placed on 07/21/2007 in Tijuana Mexico by Dr. Gonzalez. I am 17 1/2 weeks post-op and have lost 35 pounds so far. I had a great experience with Dr. G and being in Mexico.

Dr. Gonzalez was my doctor for my lap band placement on 07/21/2007 and he is wonderful. MY experience in Mexico was great. Email me if you have any questions or concerns vickie6866@yahoo.com

I had my lap band placed in Mexico by Dr. G on 07/21/2007. I am always busy and must admit that I don't come on this site as mush since after my surgery. As a result I don't post often, but I felt that I needed to give a shout out to sing Dr. G and his staff praises. I have been in the health care field for over 10 years(I have four nursing degrees) so having the best was first and foremost. I did a lot of research and then I made my choice and for me it was the very best that I could get for myself. I was treated like a family member by Dr. G, Dr. V and his wife Laura, and all the other staff members while at Mexico. When I was taken to my return flight home by Laura she even wanted to take me on a personal shopping trip if I was up to it, she is great. I had went a year before to another doctor in Mexico and backed out right before I was taken into surgery because I didn't feel that I was doing the right thing. This time around I didn't feel anything but peace and I knew that this was the right choice for me. I know that Dr. G and his staff made that possible, and I had a very uneventful time and my surgery went well. I stayed at the motel the night before the surgery, had surgery the following day sometime after lunch, stayed that night at the clinic, and then went home later that next afternoon. I did great and other than a little weaknesss in the first few days at home I was great. Getting used to this band has been a new and very rewarding learning experience. I have had Dr. G and his staff with me alone this journey with many calls and e-mails checking on me and offering words of encouragement. I am 17 1/2 weeks post-op and have lost 35 pounds so far. This band has final broke my love affair with food and I am having a great time. If anyone wants to talk about the band or Dr. G feel free to email me vickie6866@yahoo.com

I have a 4cc band. I had a fill from 2cc to 3cc yesterday morning. It is now a day and a half later and I am freakin a little. I feel that tight knot like pressure in my throat at times. I can get any kind of liquids down without a problem. So I tried some scrambled eggs this morning and was able to only get a few bites in and then I think I threw up two times with pain in throat afterward. Not having learned my lesson I tried a soft piece of fish this afternoon and again I threw up four times. Now I am freakin and wandering if I am too tight. I am now only doing liquids. I would be a little calmer if I could get some form of soft food in and keep it there. How long should I wait until I decide that I am for sure too tight and have an unfill. I so much want to stay at this fill level because at 2cc I could eat more than I should have been able to and was hungry often. Any advice would be great!!

Thanks everyone for your helpful advice. I decided I was too tight and I had a little unfil of .25cc so now I am at 2.75cc. I am now doing great, and can keep anything down as long as I follow the bandster rules of chewing well and no liquids during meals. Now I get full on a very small amount versus before so I am at my "sweet spot" and loving it. I hope this is the last fill I will need for a while. I will be 12 weeks post-op on saturday and I have lost 25 pounds so far so I am very happy and hope to continue on this track.

Well with the 2 cc I had started feeling like it did before when I was able to eat way to much. So I again for a second time went from 2cc to 3cc this past Thursday. I again could not tolerate food at all even though liquids stayed down fine, so I had a little unfil down to 2.75cc on Sunday. Now I seem to have found my "sweet spot" and I am very happy and hope that this last for a while. It's hard to believe how much difference .25cc taken out can make. I can now eat anything okay, just have to chew very good, no liquids with meals. Now I can only eat a small amount before I feel full, so I am loving this and hope that it is a while before I need another fill. I will be 12 weeks post-op on Saturday and I have lost 25 pounds so far so I am progressing nicely.

I had approx. 2cc in my 4cc band up until a few days ago when I had another unfill/fill. At 2cc I had gotten to the point where I could eat about anything I wanted if I cut it up in small bites and then chewed well and had very little liquid during eating. I had a lot of the clear slime covered vomiting in order to get to this point. I had another fill(unfilled of 1.75cc, was supposed to have 2cc)for a 3 cc total on saturday, felt like way to much so I had a unfill of 1cc for a total of 2 cc on Monday. I am having a very hard time getting anything other than liquids down, liquids go fine. I have tried food during the afternoon of monday and on tuesday, but almost anything that I tried was vomited back up immediately. And the golf ball that it feels like I have swallowed each time is horrible. I never felt like this after my last fill(which was my first one). My question is do I need to just wait this one out a few days and have only liquids or do I need to have an unfill immediately. I feel like I am going crazy with this restriction since I had such an easy time with the first one. :help:

The lap band cost too much money and recovery & living with this device is not easy. Please DON'T mess with something like this if you are not a trained medical professional. You have worked hard to get to where you are now, and it is necessary to continue to work hard to get to the final results that you are seeking. There are many, many thinks that can and do go wrong with fills, please take care of your health, call your surgeon or another qualified provider for follow up care TODAY!!

Thanks everyone for your very helpful advice. I has an emergency unfill own to 2 cc a few days after the 3 cc fill. I think most of my problem with not tolerating this fill was due to swelling from the actual fill and then the vomiting that soon followed. I am still having trouble with some foods as always and depending on what time of day it is, but I seem to be able to hold more food than before. I go back for a possible fill tomorrow, this time I am going to go on a liquid diet for at least two days, then mushy for another two days, and then maybe on to solids, even though my provider doesn't recommend anything other than liquid for a few hours after a fill. Thanks once again this site is great, keep up the good work.:clap2:

I am going to be having my lap band done on July 21 by Dr. Gonzalez. I am doing some research trying to find a fill doctor near where I live. Even thought the fills are free with my chosen doctor the other costs (airfare $500-$800, transportation$60,hotel$80) of the cross country trip is a little high. I live in rural southeastern Kentucky, which is 1 1/2 hours from Lexington Ky and/or Knoxville Tennessee. If I could find someone within reasonable driving distance I could save some money & time. So far the closest doctor I saw mentioned was one in Ohio, which is at least a four hour drive for me. If there is anyone out there who can give me the names & cost of doctors that they use which would help me that would be great. Thanks in advance for all your help. Vickie :ranger:

Thanks everyone for all the great information. Dr. Allen sounds like a good possible choice for my fills, but Knoxville would be the closest to travel for me so someone there would be the best. Suzie we are about to take a wonderful journey together, we have started as strangers, but hopefully we will end as friends. Vickie :whoo:

Hello Suzie: Thanks for the information. We live very close together, I live between Barbourville & Corbin. It would be great if we had our procedures close together that way we could be recovery buddies. I researched a lot of doctor in the US and Mexico and I decided to go with Dr. Gonzalez in Tijuana. Let me know if you want to chat farther or if I can be of any help and I will give you my e-mail address. Vickie :eek:

I am in need of so good advise and fast. I am planning on having the Lap Band surgery sometime around July 18, 2007 if I can make a final decision on which doctor to use. I have limited my choices to five doctors and I could use some input from everyone. This is what I know about my choices so far. (1st choice)Cantu/Mansur (Reynosa, Mexico) free lifetime fills, done over 5000 surgeries, go home early, can pay online before surgery, costs $7900 (2nd choice)Valencia (Tijuana, Mexico) free lifetime fills, impressive professional background, can pay online before surgery, costs ?$8100 (3rd choice) Gonzalez (Tijuana, Mexico) free lifetime fills, done lots of surgeries, costs $7250 (4th choice) Huacuz (Tijuana, Mexico) have met him and liked him alot, costs $7000(? cost for credit card use) (5th choice) verboonen (Tijuana, Mexico) go home early I want as good a price as I can find without settling for poor services. I need to pay with two-three credit cards so it would be a great peace of mind to be able to pay online before leaving home and have no worries about something not going through once I get to Mexico. I also like the ideal of recovering at home soon after surgery, providing all goes well. Free fills are not a must because it looks like it will be cheaper to go to a US facility rather than pay the $500+ airfare as well as other travel related expenses. Sorry so long, but I am in desperate need of assistance. Thanks in advance for all that respond. Vickie :help: