Ange05

The needle is going directly through fat, so no you wont feel much at all.

I need help, I just had another fill and im up to 6ml in a 10ml band. Previously at 5ml, I could eat small amounts, I would get the full feeling and my portion sizes dropped and I was loosing good weight. I could comfortably eat when I chewed etc. Now with 1 extra mil in my band I have problems eating soft fruit, yoghurt, even drinking some things, I only have to take 1 bite of food, chew and most of the time it gets stuck and I end up vomiting, then sometimes I can eat, but it feels like im swallowing a golf ball and I get pains in my chest but the food does go down. When I can eat without problems (only sometimes) I still get an uncomfortable feeling in my stomach. Is this to tight? Or is this the right restriction, it hasnt been the most pleasant experience and I'm almost waiting 15 minutes inbetween bites.

Half of my weight loss was directly after the surgery because of the mushie diet, so I really havent lost that much at all in the past couple of months.

Because I still felt like my restriction wasn't good enough, my portion sized reduced, but I could still eat quite alot and was still feeling hungry at times. Sometimes my restriction was good, and other times it felt like I had none, so I guess sometimes it was good, some times not etc. When I said good weight, I think it's ok, but I think it could be better. I have lost 18 pounds or 9kg since August.

Congrats to Obama, I think he has taken it. I am reading alot of forums on Australia based websites & other community group forums and it's amazing how much they support Obama even though we cant vote! lol We have all the coverage here and it's great to see Obama ahead.

Im from Australia and if you ordered it from here I wouldn't doubt the safety what so ever. I would be more concerned about ordering it from China. You can get Optifast from pretty much anywhere here.

I loved the hospital gown, sounds funny but it was a massive blue thing that tied up at the side & going to the toilet etc was easy as I didnt have to bend down to pull down clothes etc. I also awoke after surgery in the gown obviously but I did have blood stains on it around the stomach area & im glad I didn't wear my own. Basically because I had a hernia repaired in surgery I just had no energy, it was so painfull to move & the thought of having to get up and get dressed was like...forget it!

You really would of backed out because of suppositories Emma????? They are really no big deal. Sunwyse, I had to take them also & I know it's a bit yuck, but they work wonders for your recovery & they work quickly. They reduce ANY swelling. You would only have to take them for a few weeks or even days. Not many people bring up that they had to take them as it can be a bit embarassing. I've spoken to quite a few people who have had to take them also.

I was able to wear either my own or the hospital gown. I did bring my own, but I had no energy to get out of bed and get changed, it was just to much hard work. So luckily I had my mum to help me get changed when we left the hospital.

I originally planned only 7 days off, I went back to work, felt sick, dizzy and nauseous and decided to go home. I ended up having 2 weeks off work.

Hey guys, Need a little help from fellow bandsters. When I had my first fill (4ml in a 10ml band) the only time I could feel restriction was when I ate things like bread rolls & things that would turn pretty much to dough. I had my second fill a week ago & things are definitely different. I now have 6mls in a 10ml band. I have trouble eating fruits like Mango, Peaches, banana and also things like Scrambled eggs & bread. However I can still eat things like meat, Pasta, Rice etc. I chew everything very well but I dont understand how mushy things are a problem and things like meat are no problem? I'm having to eat alot slower because food is getting stuck easily which I am coping with fine, but im also not getting a "full" feeling more just that things are getting stuck ALL THE TIME! Luckily the food goes down and I dont end up throwing up. I need help, I feel like I have great restriction but no "full" feeling pretty much because it's taking me soooo long to eat anything.

Hey Roheryn, Was that the conference in Argentina? My Doctor just got back from a huge confererence overseas regarding Lapband. Right now it's taking me atleast half an hour to eat a meal. My restriction is pretty confusing, sometimes mushy foods get stuck and meat doesn't. It's all a learning experience I guess but its confusing me since i've had 2 fills already.

Take it easy for awhile. I know you probably want to get things done around the house but the house can wait, you healing cant! Your body is your temple!

I just cant believe that happened to you. That woman is totally out of line, she should of got bloody fired! I just told my employer that I had to go in for surgery and I would provide the correct documentation on arrival back to work, it's none of their business.

Hang in there, I had a hernia repair aswell and my recovery was 2-3 weeks. Each day you will feel better.

Unfortunately there is no shorter waiting period. The government has in place a 12 month waiting period that applys to all Insurance company's for elective surgery and a whole lot of other procedures. I even asked the insurance company that if I paid all my yearly premiums up front, could I get around the waiting period and the answer was no. Like Fanny Adams, I didn't want to wait so I decided to pay it outright.

Yes defintely take out Private Heath Insurance, things can go wrong (knock on wood) and it can cost you thousands to go back in hospital again. I took out private insurance with MBF for their Hospital Only cover. I only pay $20.00 a fortnight and thats a little amount to pay for peace of mind.

Yeah definitely, if I didn't shop around I could of paid up to $17,000. Even though my doctor didn't charge as much for the procedure, he is highly qualified with over 30 years experience so the lesser amount didn't bother me for that reason. It was a very easy going experience and my doctor was fantastic, he also owns 3 or 4 weight loss clinics in Sydney.

I paid for my surgery outright in Sydney and I shopped around for the cheapest surgeon I could find. The total cost for me was $13,000. It worked out for me like this: Hospital - About $7200 (No Rebate from Medicare) Anethetist - $800.00 (I got $297.00 back from Medicare) Surgeon - $5200 (I got $1000 back from Medicare) Obviously if your surgery is prolonged or they find a hernia or something like that in surgery extra costs will apply from the hospital & your surgeon. Hospital costs are different for every hospital, so you could pay more or less than what is above. That is also not a set Anethetist amount they can vary and obviously how much your surgeon charges can be different also. You have to pay all amounts up front before surgery & they will give you receipts to take to Medicare. Make sure you take out atleast a Basic Hospital Cover (you will still need to wait the full 12 month goverment waiting period) before you could claim. But take out private insurance because if something does go wrong, after 12 months you will be covered for all hospital costs.

The pre-op diet is two weeks? How about the diet afterwards? How long is that.... and how long is it about until you actually eat solid foods? (Steak, chicken, etc) What do you eat during pre-op? - The Pre Op Diet depends on your doctor. However how long the pre op diet goes for can also be decided by your BMI. The pre op diet is generally to shrink your liver and to get rid of any fat around the liver so the surgery is easily performed but also to loose as much excess fat around the stomach as possible. - The Post Op Diet is usually 6 weeks max. The first couple of weeks are liquids only as your stomach will be very swollen. The weeks following that are a mushie period (i.e soups) which can last for 2-3 weeks as advised by your doctor. You will probably slowly ease on solid foods around the 5-6 week mark. Although depending on restriction (how pumped up the band is) eating things like steak/chicken may be difficult. How long does the pain last from the surgery? I had my gall bladder removed... is it similar to that pain? - Some people have very minimal pain which can last a week, but others take a couple of weeks to feel 100%. Me personally I wasn't feeling better for 2 weeks as I had a hernia repaired in surgery. I couldn't tell you about the same feeling as gall bladder as I personally havent had it removed. What does a psych evaluation consist of? Is it just a bunch of questions they ask? What kind? How long is the evaluation usually last? - Phych Eval - mine lasted for about an hour, they ask you all kinds of questions. Most of them I cant remember now, but they are all asked for a reason so they can find out more about you and the reasons behind your weight etc etc. Did you vomit any? Do you feel like vomiting? I made the mistake of eating & drinking two close to bed time once. This can cause food/drink not to go down properly...hence throwing it back up when you go to bed. So just be carefull of that. Also taking medication to close to bed time caused me to be sick as it had the same effect as above.

This happened to me a few times and it was because of the following: - I had something to eat or drink to close to bed time, it doesn't all go down and you have to throw up. - I took medication with Water to close to bed time and the same thing happened, dry reaching, pretty much acid / saliva that is coming back up.

I had my operation 3 weeks after seeying my doctor for the first appointment. You do have to wait out the 12 months for the insurance company to pay such a claim, it's a government standard waiting period that applys for all heath insurance companies, who ever is telling you otherwise I think is pulling your leg.

Hang in there, I had that pain for about 3 weeks. Did your doctor prescribe you anti inflamatorys? This will bring down the swelling.

The only advice I would give is make sure you have all the correct liquid foods at home so you dont have to go out shopping later on. Make sure everything is easily accessible so that you dont have to do excessive bending or stretching. Your stomach will be quite sore for a week or so, so you dont want to cause yourself extra pain. I dont know if your a light sleeper, but I took ear plugs to hospital, even with the pain killers, I was wide awake all night, until the ear plugs went in.

Please do the right thing and stay on liquids for the required time. I did and it was hard but like the above comment, if you are eating normally you have an increased risk of slippage. The stitches need to heal, you would only be only giving them extra stress right now.