Hi. I'm new to this forum and am somewhat confused as to how to use it, but here goes. I'm in Castro Valley and am going to go to my first appointment on March 6 at Kaiser-Richmond, where they do the surgery, to see if it's right for me. My cousin, who looks almost like my identical twin and lives in Ohio, had it done about 6 weeks ago and is doing very well. I'm excited but nervous. I have IBS and GERD, and am wondering how lapband procedure works w/those conditions. I hope to get to know some of you as I go through my research and, perhaps, eventual procedure. Best of luck to all of you!