IRC

I have a 10 cc band and am at 5.75 for the last 2 months.... I think I will be here for a while. My restriction is great. Staying satisfied longer.

Hi all, I had my surgery at Providence with Dr. Sims. He is great and so is his staff. They have a great support group that meets on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 7pm. You can contact Melissa (she's the program coordinator) at 751-4300 if you have any questions. All, I can say is I had my surgery on April 2008 and it has been the best decision I have ever made.

This is what I'm going thru right now. I went in 2 days ago for a fill. The week before they had taken out .25 because I was getting stuck everytime I ate anything. Of course after that I felt like I was wide open. So 2 days ago I asked them to put in a little, the dr. told the nurse to put the .25 back in since swelling had gone down. I feel hardly any restriction when I eat. I am eating about 1-1/2 cups of food, get full and stay full for about 3 hours. Is it possible the fill didn't make it in the port? Is this enough restriction to loose the pounds? I'm trying to figure out the inconsistency with these fills. (urghh)

Don't know if you'll experience any nausea (I did). I couldn't drink anything for the first few days because of nausea. The only thing I could tolerate was Gatorade. It kept me from getting dehydrated. Sipped on Gatorade for a few days, I think it kept me from having to go back to the hospital to get an IV for dehydration.

I have 4 cc in my size 10 band. Sometimes I have restriction, sometimes I can pretty much eat anything (especially in the evenings). My question is...when you have finally reached your sweet spot, is your restriction going to be consistent or will it continue to fluctate from one day to the other?

Patchelton, thank you for the very encouraging and informative post. This is what I needed to hear today. It reminded me that I need to do my part in order for my band to work.

I have good restriction for about 3-4 days after a fill. I go for about 4-5 hours before getting hungry. Then I am satisfied with small amounts of food when I do eat. However, lately on the 5th or 6th day I start feeling like I could eat and want more. Still not eating like I used to pre-band but still more than a cup of food. Is this how it's always going to be?

My doc doesn't use a flouro for my fills either unless he suspects a problem. His nurse is the one who does my fills, I love her she gets it perfectly the first try every time. I lay on my back with a pillow under my waist, arms over my head. She feels for my port and it's all over in less than 1 minute. So far I've not experienced any pain or problems.

I wish I had just stayed with my original plan of telling only my husband and two daughters. I know there have been a lot of negative responses and opinions told behind my back.

I went through exactly the same thing about 2 months ago when I had my lap band surgery. I had weakness, nausea, depression. On the third day I called my surgeon's nurse and she told me to start drinking Gatorade. I was amazed at how soon I started feeling better once I started drinking it. Please do call the dr. with any concerns and get some Gatorade. I'm 2 months out and feel great!

Kristylyn, I asked this same question at my support group meeting last night. I also was banded on Apr. 14. The nurse told me, that since my swelling has finally gone down, I will start experiencing more hunger. She said if I am overeating just make sure I'm overeating on healthy foods (protein and vegetables). At least I'm not gorging myself like I used to...so there is some restriction. I don't go in for my first fill until Jun 4.

I have AETNA POS II also. I didn't have to submit proof of past diets, but my insurance coordinator in the surgeon's office suggested that I include a personal letter stating why I needed this surgery and list all past diets that I had already tried. I was approved in 3 days. Good luck to you.

I feel for you. I was nauseous for 4 days post op. (never threw up). I called my surgeon's nurse and she called me in a prescription for phenergan. Made me want to sleep all the time but at least it got rid of the nausea.

I was banded on Apr. 14 also. I didn't do well with the anesthesia. I also began to question my decision because of all the pain. My husband took off work for 3 days to help me around the house and that was wonderful. Last night for the first time I was able to sleep on my side (where the port is) without any pain. It does get better, just take it a day at a time.

I was banded 3 days ago. I am experiencing terrible nausea and hiccups and just the thought of anything to eat or drink makes it worse. I'm not throwing up because I haven't been able to drink anything. However, I do feel like I could get 'dry heaves', The dr. prescribed some phenergan and it seems to help a little but the nausea doesn't completely go away. How long does this last? Should I call my dr?

Thank you all for your encouragment. I have called the dr's office and he's suppposed to be calling me back.. Thanks again

I was banded 2 days ago. I also was told to take my Nexium before I got to the hospital. When the anesthesiologist came in we discussed giving me something for nausea also. So glad she did because in recovery they had to give me another shot of nausea medicine because I was still very nauseaous. So they are very willing to comply.

I have AETNA Choice II also, and was approved in 3 days. I just had to see my nutritionist once a month for 3 months and my primary care dr. once a month for 3 months. I didn't lose any weight during this time-they told me to just start changing my eating habits. Had all the necessary tests (sleep study, psychologist, etc). I have started the pre-op diet and have lost 8 lbs. in 7 days. My surgery date is April 14.

I am so excited, I can't believe it happened this fast. My paper work was faxed the first time on 3/17. Called my insurance one week later on 3/24 to check the status. They told me they had never received anything from my surgeon's office. Called the surgeon's office and let them know that the fax had not gone thru. They refaxed it that same day (3/24) and I found out yesterday that my surgery was approved and I'm scheduled for April 14, 2008!!

BMI: 41 Co-morbities: Severe Obstructive Sleep Apena, High Blood Pressure. Also added that I have GERD, High Cholesteral and Osteo-arthritis.

April 14th is my surgery date. My doctor is Dr. Sims in Waco, TX. I start my pre-op diet on April 1st. I'm thinking I'll go out for steak tonight...it'll be a while before I can eat that again.

I have AETNA Choice POS II

SisterC....thank you so much. I'm really excited. I've been so encouraged by all the support I've seen on this forum.