steph_co

Do a search for the member CoffeeWench. She was part of the FDA trials, has done great with her band and says she'd do it again. I know there are others around here that have had the band quite awhile, but she's the longest in years that I can think of.

1. Not yet. But then, I've only had 2 of them since being banded. But they were both right on time (even though the first one was right after my surgery when I would have ovulated on or around the day of surgery) and not much different as far as pain. 2. Kind of. The reason I say that is because it's not so much a physical drive as it is that I just LIKE being naked more with DH and feeling his skin on mine.

Gees. This thread makes me want to cry. But you know - it's stories like these that have scared me into staying away from doctors. But I haven't had a single doctor tell me I was too heavy...at least nothing I can remember. And yes - I looked fat at 233 and my heaviest, 240. I've stayed away from getting a gyno check up for 4 years because I didn't want to get a comment about my weight - I already knew I was heavy and my mental state couldn't have handled it. When I got pregnant, I was TERRIFIED to make an OB appointment because I didn't want a snide comment. The OB turned out to be this incredibly skinny lady and I thought for sure she'd say something...she never did. I wish doctors could be educated on sensitivity when it comes to this because it's not like people don't KNOW they are overweight. It's the bad ones that ruin it for everybody. I'm REALLY glad I never ran into this bias because I seriously probably would have burst into tears. I don't like getting comments about being fat.

* what were all the costs involved? Was the initial amount given to you the full amount or are there hidden costs that I need to be taking into consideration My cost was $10,850 and included the pre-op visits with nutritionist, social worker, surgeon, NP, the surgery, the surgical center costs, anesthesiologist, aftercare and fills for 3 months post-op. No hidden costs. Oh, I did have a blood draw that I paid for on my own but that wasn't done through their office. I want to say that was less than $100. * if your BMI was between 35 to 40, does the center you went to still require you to have a comobidity to go along with your lower ranged BMI (I have a BMI of 36 or so and I'm not sure I have any comobidities - I will need to do a sleep apnea test and I know I have a higher range on blood pressure, but it's never been diagnosed (I have med records that show all my bp ranges, I'm sure). I was just under 37 BMI. I didn't have any major medical co-morbidities, but more like nuisances... infertility (not proven that the weight was to blame, but heck, why not count it), aching joints, spider veins, plantar fasciitis. I think those are all of them. Oh, I think they also count depression and then there's also obesity-related hypoxia (haha...fancy word meaning you get winded doing physical activity...I did...going up stairs). Any kind of physical complaint you may have that you can blame on your weight...COUNT IT. * is there anything esle I need to be researching as for as self pay people go? I feel like I have researched and researched, but could still be missing something.... Erm...the only thing I can think of is going into the FAQs section and they have questions you can ask your surgeon. Make sure your surgeon is part of a Center of Excellence. Oh, I did find a doctor who normally charges $12,500 but is running a "special" (I know that sounds bad, huh) of $9,500 thru 2/29. I thought that was a great deal being as that's lower then anywhere I have researched yet! That is an excellent deal. My surgeon used to charge $10,850, but recently lowered it to $9,900.

I'm not in law enforcement. I'm a lowly rent-a-cop security officer. :hurray: LOL But I have looked into law enforcement for quite awhile even before the band. I even saw this as an opportunity now as I'm getting smaller and don't feel like I'd be snickered at for asking if I could go on a ride-along. Our company works at the courthouse in our county and I know several of the detentions officers there. Good luck with everything! I hope you get your wish!

I have to 100% agree with Wheetsin on this one: He definitely needs to decide what's more important, his pride or his life. As to the "weak" comment. I'm moving around a whole heck of a lot more now since the surgery than I was before and I feel fantastic. I'm eating A LOT less than I used to before surgery, too. I had issues with hypoglycemia before the surgery. Meaning that I could eat and less than 2 hours later, I could be falling down and feeling like I hadn't eaten in ages. I don't experience anywhere near the degree of hypoglycemia that I used to. Part of that may have to do with eating more quality foods than I was before, but also not having the hunger signals helps. And really, is he so athletic right now that trying to lose some lbs by eating less is going to dent his routine? By losing weight, it'll be SO much easier to move around and he'll actually LIKE moving around more.

I really, really, really hope this lasts. This certainly feels like restriction. I made myself 2 deviled eggs when I got up for work yesterday. It took about 45 minutes to eat them, I had to chew, chew, chew and wait between bites. Even then, if I swallowed anything bigger than a pea, it HURT. So I got full on my two eggs at 5:15pm and seriously wasn't even hungry until after 9pm. That was NICE. I started getting a little weak just because I do so much walking. But I got my Slim Fast in at 10 and everything is hunky-dory. I just realized I drank that 2 hours ago and I don't even feel hungry right now. OMG, if this lasts, I am in HEAVEN. Because if eating is as much of a chore long term as it has been just for the eggs I ate yesterday, then I am SET to break this dang addiction.

*cough*PLAYER*cough**cough*

I can only hope and pray. And I'm agnostic.

She tried to add 2 cc for my first fill. Every doctor varies. You should just ask your doc what they start out with when they put the band in and then what they usually add on the first fill. As for advice...hum. Can't think of anything, really. Practice relaxation techniques. :frown:

Name.......................Start.....................Current.......... ......To Go 1. TxArcher..................360.......................353............... ......8 2. Momto1plus1.............241.......................237................. ....8(229) 3. Hungryforchange......227.5....................219.5..................4 .5 (total lost 8 pounds) 4. Steph....................203.5.....................192.5..................4 (188.5 goal)

Being aggressive on fills CAN cause complications. Before anybody jumps on me, I said "CAN," not WILL. I think that's why some surgeons are more conservative. If they had possibly been aggressive to begin with, ended up having problems, they may have changed their method. I had 3 cc in when I got the band installed. For my first fill she tried putting in 2 cc and I couldn't get Water to go down, so she took out .5 cc to bring me to 4.5 cc. I COULDN'T have had any more than that amount then. My band loosened, I was then able to have 2 more cc put in on my fill yesterday. I'm now at 6.5 cc. Sometimes you need to let your body adjust to this band thing - it is a foreign object, you know. It's good to be gentle with your body in this process. It's doing a lot of work for us.

That's exactly what I thought. That's why it was the first thing I did after LapBand...it was the next most noticeable physical trait that I don't like that I could pretty easily fix. I had the Intralase. Best laser in the country. :frown:

Dang. Got 2 cc of fill today on top of my 4.5 already in there. So up to 6.5 cc. I could feel (and HEAR!) the Water gurgling through right after the fill. I'm on liquids for 2 days, so I started a Slim-Fast shake when I got home. I took my Vitamins while I was drinking the Slim Fast. YEOUCH. I thought for sure I was going to PB them. It hurt. And they weren't even big vitamins. I'm taking supplements to hopefully help my skin as I lose weight and they're capsules. It took me nearly an hour to finish my Slim Fast after that. Gees. This might just be restriction! Goodness, I hope so. That would so rock. I have lost a lot of weight and the NP asked how I've done it without restriction and I told her "will power." It's true - that's what this has been. BUT, the weight is at least a tad bit harder to regain when I slip, now. It'll be so nice to be able to lose weight with the assistance I PAID for over two months ago. LOL

I didn't tell anybody IRL but my husband. This is precisely one of the reasons. I've toyed with the idea of telling my mom, but I don't know if I ever will.

I'm sorry, I know I'm not part of your group, but your title caught my eye. That's crazy! I would have lost my job if I hadn't been able to drive for 15 days! I went back to work at 4 days post-op, but I did have my husband with me. But driving was fine. I drive around for 12 hours at night off and on as a security officer. Unless you're on narcotics, driving should not be restricted. Has your doctor explained WHY the restriction?

Sounds like good restriction to me. Make sure that you're chewing any solid food to mush when you eat. Then wait a minute between bites before taking another TINY bite and chewing it to mush, too. Yes, restriction can kick in 3 weeks after the fill. I've read that happening to a lot of people. I hope my fill tomorrow is more effective than my first one was. I'd like to be where you are at. I've heard it recommended that if you PB, that you should finish the day on liquids to let things settle down.

LOL - I don't know. It tastes good to me. I don't feel like I need to cool my mouth down. For some reason my mouth can tolerate the hot stuff better than before. The hotter, the better. We went to Chili's last night and I got a 1-oz cup on the side of buffalo sauce. OMG, I was dipping my grilled chicken in it and it was SO good. I was full and couldn't eat any more, so I actually ended up downing some of the sauce alone. Haha. The urge is strong.

I would strongly recommend you get yourself to a counselor. Then you have somebody that you can bounce your thoughts off of and get professional feedback. It can help to work through your feelings and clear your head so that YOU know what would be best for you so that you have strength in your convictions and the strength to do what needs to be done. Would he be willing to go to a counselor with you? In the past, I probably would have said, "Just leave the jerk." But I'm coming to see that marriage can take a lot of work sometimes. Who knows? Maybe his problem can be corrected and you two can go on to have a happy marriage together? Sometimes guys aren't the best at communicating feelings. Maybe he's just scared that you're too good for him, hence the affair comments. If you get a counselor, they would be able to give you more input about the situation since they've probably dealt with it more. I will add this, though - I do not think abuse is "okay." If it truly is getting to the point of demoralizing your character and you've talked to him about it so he understands how what he says affects you and it continues - then yes, it may be time to move on. Make sure if you leave that you have support from friends and/or family because it can make the journey easier and safer. And as much as it sucks, you can't control what kind of crap he would end up telling your daughter about you. When she gets old enough to understand adult things, she'll figure things out. Do you really want to run the risk, though, that when she gets older (but still living at home) that he'd start emotionally/verbally abusing her?

I got LASIK a week ago, actually. :rolleyes2: I love the results already. No side effects whatsoever. At my one-day post-op, I was a strong 20/25, weak 20/20. He said my vision would only improve from there and it has. I had one of the best surgeons in the country. Anybody getting into this thread - do your research on a place before using it. Especially since this is the only post the individual has made on this board...very suspect, IMO. Besides that, I've NEVER heard of side effects for 2 months. Yikes.

I heart you, Nina. You crack me up so hard. I love reading your posts.

I don't think you need to worry too terribly much about your pouch stretching before you start getting fills. But I think if you eat to uncomfortably full or past that point, you could cause damage. Before you're all healed up, I'd say you're more in danger of causing a slip.

Eat. Haha. That's what I did. I'm kidding, though, in reality you shouldn't do that. Maybe start some healthy habits - get out and start walking. The more you exercise before your surgery, the quicker and easier your recovery will be.

I am so glad you brought this up. LOL I mentioned this awhile back. I had mornings where I would get home from work and eat a tablespoon of hot sauce. I did that several mornings. I'll be sitting at work or driving in the car and all of a sudden get an INTENSE craving for hot sauce or fresh horseradish or peppers straight up. What used to be "hot enough" before the band doesn't even come close, now. I LOVE the burn, now. I have NO idea what that's about. Now that you're saying you've seen a lot of women in your support group with that problem, I may ask my NP when I go in for a fill the day after tomorrow. In fact, here's the thread I started a month ago: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f17/weird-cravings-47272/

Oh, heavens, yes. I hadn't even thought of this until you brought it up. I do tons of walking now - no problem. I haven't had to stand in one spot for too long, though, so who knows how that would be. But I would definitely have my moments when being out with DH that my feet would get tired - I'd be sick of walking, etc. OR, after a night of working (and not even walking half as much as I do now) I would get home and the plantar fasciitis would be hurting so bad. My heel would just ACHE. Like I said - I hadn't even thought about it, but my feet don't hurt at all. It's really nice. I don't mind standing around at all. I used to be able to stand for a few minutes and then if I had a choice, I'd get my rear sat down ASAP. Now I'm surprised at how long I really can stand. So, yeah - weight loss dramatically improves this aspect.