Parvathi

Not in the US, but I'll add in my situation anyways LOL. I'm in Australia - insurance covered the band, apart from $3000 surgeon and anesthesiologist fees. Medicare (not the same as in the US, its our socialized health care system here and everyone is on it) covers all of the fills. In the US though, I think some of the earlier bandsters went to Mexico for it because it wasn't approved by the government yet. Barbaraann, your story about Mexico sounds excellent! I'm sure that made it much more comfortable and you probably made a few life long friends

Oh, meant to add - one other thing I did pre op was to make up meals that could be frozen, for the family. I knew I wouldn't feel like cooking afterwards and didn't want my husband to be stuck doing it. Then I'd just thaw out in the morning and reheat for them at night.

I lived on soup, v8 juice and these drinks we have here called Nudies, which are a really delicious fresh fruit juice blend. Heinz makes a really tasty range of pureed soups that were my saviour post banding - especially after I went back to work, as they come in a convenient lil microwavable cup. Another thing I used alot post banding was strappy tops with shelf bras built in. It was quite uncomfortable trying to wear a real bra for about 3 weeks.

I feel the same way. I've seen some ladies walking around in the mall recently and thought - would they get offended if I gave them Dr Crosthwaite's card? heh.. but I'm sure they would, just as I would if someone would have done that to me.

LOL - thanks heaps, Bobalooey! You're a funny man

Hi all, I seem to have hit a plateau the last few weeks. While I realize that I could eat a bit better and exercise a bit more, I'm not doing much different from right after being banded - and then I was losing. Here's an example of my food intake (from yesterday):- Breakfast - coffee and Water (not really a morning person) lunch - chicken wrap with salad - probably about 6 good bites of it dinner - baby asian greens salad with 1/4 cup diced corned beef (probably about a cup and a half of this in total .. I suck at measuring salad) with lime dill and dijion dressing Desert - one can diet coke I drink water all through out the day, always have. Lately I've fallen victim to one diet coke per day - not sure why as I've never been a soft drink person. I haven't gotten along to the gym much lately, which I know I need to work on, so I do realize that that is part of the problem. I can still eat quite a bit in one sitting, as long as I chew properly - ie, I can eat 2 slices of thin crust pizza over an hour sitting. That kind of makes me think maybe I might need a bit more fill. But I get a tight feeling when drinking coffee or milk on many occassions, so I'm unsure. Any advice on what I could change/add/etc would be greatly appreciated.

LOL littlebigfarms - cute!!

We went out to dinner a few weeks ago, to a really nice restaurant. Its one that we only go to once a year, or when we have overseas visitors. My favorite meal there is the rib eye - the best piece of meat I've ever tasted. I'm lucky in that, I can still eat steak quite easily, as long as I take tiny bites and chew chew chew. So I ordered the rib eye, even though I knew I wouldn't be able to eat it all. All of the things on the menu were quite large (portion wise), so I would have been in the same boat, regardless. After about five tiny bites and sharing a good chunk of it with my daughter, I was all filled up. The waitress insisted something must have been wrong with the meal, judging by what was left on the plate. She just wouldn't drop it, even after I assured her that it was a beautiful meal and I was just full. In the end, it was quite embarrassing and I left feeling guilty for being so wasteful. My hubby said not to worry about it and that as long as I enjoyed the meal, that's all that should count. Was just wondering if anyone else had run into this issue and if so, how do you get around it?

Well done, vinesqueen!! Makes you want to go shopping more, doesn't it hehe Just out of curiosity - what is NSV?

Not sure if this will help or not, but found this list of Cali bariatric surgeons doing a basic google search:- http://www.obesityhelp.com/morbidobesity/bariatric+surgeons+in+california.html As for the information evenings, here in Aus, I think most surgeons are doing it now, to make sure you've got plenty of information before you go in for the initial consultation. It was really helpful for me.

Coyotegirl, Congratulations!!! That's fantastic news. You made me go look mine up too LOL, as I haven't actually done that since being banded. It was 41 when I started this journey (morbidly obese), now its 35.2 (severely obese). A few more kilos gone and I'll be just plain ole obese. I can't wait hehe

Congratulations! I'm 27, married, with a child, but telling my Mom was the scariest part LOL. I made her go to the information night with me and after that, she agreed it was probably for the best. Good luck in the doctor search.

Thank you all, for the tips and advice. Paula, I just had a quick read through the link you posted and its got heaps of useful information - I've bookmarked it. It seems like my dietician may be way off on some of the stuff she's told me, such as, draw out your meals between 30 mins - 1 hour. She also said carbonation would be fine (I'll toss the diet cokes out today). I do generally drink about 3 litres of Water per day. Looks like I need to sit down and make up a menu to follow, to make sure I get all of that Protein and such in. *skips away with a new resolve*

For about the first four days I hurt pretty bad and didnt want to do anything. I always thought I had a high pain threshold, but the banding knocked me on my arse lol.

Mine gets quite sore after I go to the gym (err, which I havent done lately, but will soon lol). Especially after doing something like Water aerobics where you don't realize you're actually working those muscles.

LOL .. after reading this thread this morning, in a panic I ran to my hubby who was in the shower and demanded that he tell me if I have a foul odour. He has now thoroughly assured me I need not worry and promised that if I ever do, he'll inform me (but was smart enough to toss in that he'd love me even if I did hehe) After reading this though, I'll make sure next time I'm in the states not to purchase Secret. Sounds like its really taken a downhill dive from the days when I used to use it. *phew*

I was banded on March 4th. My weight on the day of banding was 119kgs (262 lbs). My weight this morning was 102.3kgs (225.5 lbs). So that's 36.5 lbs gone (forever hehe). Mine's coming off a bit slower than most, but I'm trying not to let that get me down. I'm 1/3 of the way through this journey. Once I get over this small plateau I've hit, I'll be fine Congratulations to you all!!

I ask myself that question alot and was just curious to see what others thought. I was always the chubby girl in school. When I hit 14, I decided bulimia was the way to fix it - and of course, it worked. At 15, I was wearing a size 8/10. Looking back at those photos, I looked quite good. I always thought I was huge though. Since being banded, I've lost 36 lbs. I'm feeling heaps better and I've noticed when I walk down the street, I generally tend to hold my head high and look people in the eye, rather than staring at the ground. I have social anxiety and hate public situations, so I reckon that's a good first step. But I still wonder when I hit 155 lbs, if I will be happy with my appearance, or if I'll always see myself as the fat girl in the room.

Hi Amber, I always order a Water, but I make sure I finish the glass before my meal arrives, then refuse refills. It does annoy me though that people tend to pester you til you have to just say, "Look, I've had surgery - now leave me alone" LOL.

I've had to switch down to a smaller plate as well, as I just couldn't bring myself to not fill the plate up and like you, I wanted to finish it all. DeLarla - I love that idea. I'll definitely have to try it - here's hoping my hubby doesn't have me committed for it LOL.

Hey Kel, Perhaps its something in the Aussie Water, cause I've done exactly the same thing this weekend. I was so excited to see 101.3kgs on the scale on Saturday morning. Told my hubby that when I broke the 99kgs barrier, I was treating myself to a massage and facial. It seemed so close! Then this morning I stepped on, weighing in at 103.4kgs. Grrr... :/

Hi iamcanadian, Is it a painful full feeling, or a satisfying full feeling?

Thanks all, for taking the time to comment Its a bit of a relief to know I'm not the only one that has these feelings at times.

Hi Patty Ann, My doctor told me the same thing. He said that it was always better to have a bit removed before a trip, so you don't get stuck somewhere with an overfill and be miserable the entire time. I haven't flown with mine yet though, so unfortunately, I can't confirm it :/ Have a fantastic trip though

I have the 10cc band - my doctor said it holds a good bit less than the 11cc one. That said, it still took me over 8 visits before I found a decent restriction. He was good enough to let me come once a week and take baby steps, so to not overfill. Unfortunately, he put 0.1ml in one week and that was all it took to put me over the edge LOL. An overfill is not fun at all :/ Just be patient - you'll get there eventually. For most of us, it took years to get this way, so it takes some time to come back off as well. In the meantime, try to plan ahead for times when there might be nothing else but fast food around. Ask you doctor what some healthy choices in the fast food range would be, etc. Good luck