peaches9

Hi Kathy, and everyone: Just a quick note before work... weird eh how we are all getting BUSY with our lives once again. The newness of the band is wearing off, a few of us have had our 'top ups' and are ready to hit the weightloss world. I don't know about everyone els, but I've been messing around with my Band a wee bit. Eating BAD calouries... I've had a major chocolate attack and succumbed to the monster. I've learned that while Icecream does not feel good after about 1/2 cup, I've learned that I can eat a whole bag of M & M's!!! Not a good thing at all. I don't know why I test this thing! I could only eat 1 slice of pizza so I was happy with that!!! the band STOPPED me!!!! I had to cut into TINY peices and eat very slowly... Today, I have resolved to mark down all my foods going in HONESTLY and I am back to the Protein shakes .... Tiny steps...

Hi there, KathyBad (you'll find her on the Lucky 7's board of July Bandsters) is from London, Ontario. She and I were both banded in Toronto at Toronto Lap Band Centre, Dr. Yau. That's where we met each other... Good luck with your journey

but the tightness you may feel is after you've had some fills and you EAT too fast or take too big a bite of food and don't chew it well enough. The only thing I "feel" is my port. which is just under the skin slightly below my belly button over to the right, down 1 1/2" ..

Surgery to take it out or repairs are all covered by my Surgeon Dr. Yau at TBLC in Toronto... I'd go back to him before I'd let any ER doctor touch me...

Well, today was a huge experience for me... First of all I DROVE into Toronto all by myself and I am SO happy that I was able to do it. I took a leisurley route and did just great.. Got to the clinic 2 hours early but that's o.k. I had lots of time to relax. The seminar was very informative...( we sure were a questioning bunch) but took longer than I had thought.. I was 2nd to last in getting my fill ( then I had to sit there and "sip" my Water bottle. That first "SIP" is really the hardest.. can't even begin to discribe the queer feeling that you get when you think 'water' will not even go down. BUT, it did I just took REALLY small sips (teaspoon) and then it got progressively better and easier... My drive home went well and I just finished 1/2 cup of beef consumme... it was WARmed so it went down easily too. Whew, glad that today is done. Grateful

Driving in T. O. is only a problem for ME as I am a whimpy driver in BIG cities... you may not be like me. Depending on where you are in the States you may feel :ocomfortable on expressways etc. Both W/Loss Lapband clinics are easy to get to and all you have to do is MAPQUEST them both for step by step directions. EASY-PEASY That being said, I would recommend TLBC and Dr. Yau's team. MOST of his staff have HAD the LapBand themselves for many years. They are great, a wee bit cheaper than SWLC in Mississauga(adjacent to Toronto). I do beleive that Dr. Colbourn from SWLC does NOT take American patients (? I don't know what the logic for that is?) but Dr. Yau does. As I met one lady who comes up from FLORIDA for her surg and fills. She flies from Miami to Buffalo NY and then rents a car and drives from Buffalo to Toronto. Good luck in whatever you decide.

Hi gang, I had my 2nd fill yest. and I was able to drink my 500 ml of Water before leaving the clinic. THen on the drive home I drank a Decaf coffee slowly. but o.k. I had a protien shake last night. BUT this morning I started to have a cup of tea, and took too big a gulp and my TEA got stuck. Really hurt, so PB'd. I waited another hour then now I am SIPPING more clear tea... will I be tight all day now? When should I try a pro shake??? I dont want a defil , as I know this fill will loosen up in a couple of days. Any suggestions?:help:

Lets take a poll

Whoo-hoo! Now you are one of us. Lots of great advise and friendship here.. Post often :clap2:

Don't forget, You can CLAIM it on your INCOME TAX return as a MEDICAL Expense!!!!

Hi , I hope this dosn't sound like a totally dumb question... but why would you need a body bug when you are banded? Dosn't the BAND keep you tight enough to lose the weight?

Hi Kathy, I just emailed JILL at TBLC to see if there was something on the roster for Wed 17th, that's the only day I don't work that week. I'l email you and let you know the results

I didn't realize where I got my Pak=rat mentality until I cleaned out my aging Mothers house when we moved her to a nursing home. My Mom had lived there 45 yrs and NEVER thrown out an envelop that a bill came in... it made me nuts.!!! and Every closet in this 3 story house was taken up with her wardrobe!!! and SHOES!!! and purses!!! I vowed then and there that I was going to de-clutter MY home for once and 4 all. Usually it happened whenever my DH got posted (military) it was a forced evacuation of JUNK every 3 - 4 years... I love the suggestion, you buy a new dress, you throw out an old one... etc. THIS STRATEGY WORKS!!! throw out, if you havn't used it, ate it, worn it, read it in 6 months or more???? YOU DON't NEED IT chuck!

Dear Angela; I know that price diff. is huge between Cda and Mexico surgeries. BUT if this was Gastric Bypass you were considering then I'd say no problem... BUT with Lapband the aftercare, appts for fills, seminars for nutrician etc.... there is actually MORE done for you after your surgery than just that one "operation day". I can't tell you how many phone calls I've made to the various members of the team at TBLC.. questions re eating, things stuck, PB's, burping.... tightness... Several fill appts. etc... this is a longterm life changing surgery, Mexico is a long ways away... if you lived in the states and it was just a mater of a 3 hour drive back there I'd say go for it... But in the long run, flipped ports, broken/leaky ports, eroded bands...etc. all these extra proceedures would need to be handled by the clinic you choose. I know these complications are NOT common but you still have to think ahead and plan for the eventuality. Perhaps that is one way they can offer things so much cheaper in Mex.... after care will be done in US or Canada in ER's or whatever... You said that you were in the lower mainland of BC, is there any clinics on the northern US border???

Am I too "tight" ? .... 2nd fill yesterday Hi gang, I had my 2nd fill yest. and I was able to drink my 500 ml of Water before leaving the clinic. THen on the drive home I drank a Decaf coffee slowly. but o.k. I had a protien shake last night. BUT this morning I started to have a cup of tea, and took too big a gulp and my TEA got stuck. Really hurt, so PB'd. I waited another hour then now I am SIPPING more clear tea... will I be tight all day now? When should I try a pro shake??? I dont want a defil , as I know this fill will loosen up in a couple of days. Any suggestions?

Kathy, I had an idea! If you get your FILL scheduled the same day as one of the Nutritional Seminars I am planning on going to those... we could meet up again.., what are your thoughts?

Patricia; Good luck with your FILL today, let us know how it goes... now you are getting to the exciting part..... I love getting on the scales now and seeing it always going down... even if it's a 10th of a pound its still encouraging to me. DonnaD: I don't think I can made the oct lunch either, we're planning a trip to Cuba leaving that weekend :-( LisainTO: I enjoyed meeting yu too! I will look forward to November's lunch for sure (if the weather cooperates!)

Just curious, where is this Dr. located did you have Medical Insurance to cover your LB or did you self pay and if so... how much?

Go to the CANADIAN BANDSTER thread here on Lapbandtalk... its usually a thread by Donna D or LoriLY.... also DODDIE63 hangs out there... all very nice ladies.

go to WWW.SparkPeople.com it is a FREE service... you can track your calories by clicking on ADD food it has Tim Horton's foods in there preprogrammed Wendy's.... McDonalds..... as there are many Healthly choices, sometime you still need to pop into a fast food joint...they are all listed Then the cal, Protein values, Fibre value, Calcium can all be tracked FOR YOU! Then it goes on to provide an Excersise Program, where it will calc. how many cal. you've burned... (I love this part) Recipes: the best part I feel... you can search for 1000's recipes of theirs complete with all the nutritional info. OR you can type in your OWN family favourites and see how many cal. per serv. they are.. you can tweek old fav. by substituting SPLENDA, low fat Margerine, use APPLESAUCE instead of OIL in a baking recipe...etc.. add GROUND FLAX MEAL to add nutrition and fibre.. I don't know about you but with smaller B.M.'s I REALLY need to up my FIBRE just so that I can "Go".... Have fun its a great resource, and to think I used to PAY weight watchers $25 per month for the same thing minus the excersise plan. :faint:

YIkes; When I browsed the Dr. Tin's site and read thearticles there regarding Band surgery... it quoted " Dr. Tin does 3 -4 LB per month in his surgical practice." WHAT??? I think I want my surgeon to have 1000's under his belt WITH some good stats to back him up... From what I've read here and on other boards there are only TWO places to consider for lap band surg in Toronto... Now in Michigan, I would whole-heartedly recommend BARIX Weight Loss CLINICs... my best friend had her W/L surg. there (OHIP paid) and they were fabulous! Excellent after care and follow up... Her Surgeon even calls her personally every couple months. (she had her surg. in Feb07)... just my 2 cents

My DH and I are traveling south for a vacation to CUBA. WE are planning late October. So I have been checking prices, cancelation ins. etc. I called Manulife regarding the Trip Cancellation Ins. as there is an exclusion of coverage if you have any "Pre-existing Medical Condition" in the prior 90 days. I had my surg on July 11th so I wanted to know that I would not be excluded if i traveled Oct 20th.. a little over 3 months. Well surgery went fine, but here's the hitch. Because its an ADJUSTABLE GASTRIC BAND and we need ongoing medical intervention ie. the Saline Fills by needle... that DISQUALIFIES you from the coverage IF you were to have something medical happen to you while traveling that could be related to your stomach or band or swelling and emergency de-fill etc. In other words to meet THEIR requirements you would have NOT had a fill in the last 3 months before traveling .... I am so pissed off... a saline injection??? That's considered a medical treatment by them... so that they can wiggle out of giving you the benefits of insurance. I am REALLY glad I phoned and asked PRIOR to booking my trip and paying for cancellation/interuption insurance... what a rip off. :omg: I'll just travel with out it. Thought you'd all like to know

KathyBad; When is your next fill scheduled? Are you going back to TBLC for it or your own family doc??? Are you going to try and come to the next Bandster Luncheon in October???

Awh, I know it is a stressful time... Unlike the OP above I didn't start having any 2nd thoughts(regrets) until this past week after my 2nd fill... I am REALLY getting restriction now (what I wanted right?) but I am finding it a challenge to drink all the Water I am supposed to PLUS I have a lot of pills to swallow through out the day and having to stop drinking during/after a meal is a drag.... I was just feeling SORRY for myself and being totally honest here.... I was MISSING PIGGING OUT!!!! Well, I am down 20 lbs since surge. and 2 fills, and down 60+ overall since I started this "new improved" me lifestyle... My pity party did not last long and I am again down weight this a.m.... So as of today, this minute... I have NO regrets... and its not that hard.. we just need to re-learn loading forks, eating off smaller plates, chewwing more.. stopping sooner*(that's the EASY PART now) There is a learning curve, just like in a new job... I learn a bit more about life with the band everyday. My hubby is so happy with the slimmer me, he says "OH I can get both my arms around you and hug you tighter"... that meant everything to me. He is such a dear. We had some great friends come for dinner last night, they hadn't seen me in quite a while... the husband couldn't stop complementing me on how good I looked!!! Now he didn't reference my weight, just kept gazing at me ... wow, I love your hair etc. etc... but I know what it was.. My blood pressures have gone from 140/90 (Dr. was wanting to Rx more pills!) down to 127/74 I am excersising at the gym without 'dying' each time... Many blessings indeed

Awh, I know it is a stressful time... Unlike the OP above I didn't start having any 2nd thoughts(regrets) until this past week after my 2nd fill... I am REALLY getting restriction now (what I wanted right?) but I am finding it a challenge to drink all the Water I am supposed to PLUS I have a lot of pills to swallow through out the day and having to stop drinking during/after a meal is a drag.... I was just feeling SORRY for myself and being totally honest here.... I was MISSING PIGGING OUT!!!! Well, I am down 20 lbs since surge. and 2 fills, and down 60+ overall since I started this "new improved" me lifestyle... My pity party did not last long and I am again down weight this a.m.... So as of today, this minute... I have NO regrets... and its not that hard.. we just need to re-learn loading forks, eating off smaller plates, chewwing more.. stopping sooner*(that's the EASY PART now) There is a learning curve, just like in a new job... I learn a bit more about life with the band everyday. My hubby is so happy with the slimmer me, he says "OH I can get both my arms around you and hug you tighter"... that meant everything to me. He is such a dear. We had some great friends come for dinner last night, they hadn't seen me in quite a while... the husband couldn't stop complementing me on how good I looked!!! Now he didn't reference my weight, just kept gazing at me ... wow, I love your hair etc. etc... but I know what it was.. My blood pressures have gone from 140/90 (Dr. was wanting to Rx more pills!) down to 127/74 I am excersising at the gym without 'dying' each time... Many blessings indeed