rena347

3 years for me! I was a slow loser so it took me almost 2 years to loose 90 lbs but have maintained for a year now.

My best friend and I were both banded within a few months of each other in 2009. I received the realize band and she received the lap band. We both had about the same amount of weight to lose. She initially lost weight much faster than I did. For whatever reason, it took me longer to get to the right fill amount in my band to reach the sweet spot. That being said, over the last few years it has been much easier for me to stay at the right maintaining adjustment level. I went in once last spring (2011) for an adjustment and she went to see her doctor 4 or 5 times over the last year for adjustments. I know everyone may experience different results but overall we have both been happy with our bands.

We travelled to China last year (December 2009) for 3 weeks to adopt our 13 year old daughter. At the time, I had 7 cc's in my realize band. I didn't get an unfill but I did delay a scheduled fill until after the trip in January. I took powered protein for my morning protein shakes, drank lots of bottled water, and was careful about the foods I ate.I didn't have any issues while we were there. In fact, I lost almost 10 lbs during our trip. I am sure the day we spent climbing the Great Wall had something to do with that! If getting an unfill would help your peace of mind - go for it. Otherwise, plan ahead and be careful about what you eat.

I was also a self pay patient. My surgery was in January of 2009. I am a slow but steady loser. I have had my ups and downs but firmly believe that writing that monthly check to repay the healthcare loan helped to motivate me to keep at it and not give up. I saved quite a bit of money in food costs - started packing my lunch instead of eating out, quit buying soda and junk food, and made more home cooked meals. I have lost 90 lbs (230 down to 140) and went from a size 20 to a size 10. Luckily, I was a packrat and had saved all of the sizes of clothes as I gained weight so I didn't have to spend a lot of money in clothes as I lost weight. I can finally fit into the size clothes that I wore before my 18 year old daughter was born! I could have purchased many things with the $12,500 dollars I paid for this surgery but none would have been as valuable as my improved health and the ability to be more active with my husband and children.

I just had my 4th fill and am now at 8 cc's. Here is my fill history: 1st fill - 4 cc's - no real restriction 2nd fill - added 2 cc's for a total of 6 cc's - some restriction 3rd fill - added 1 cc for a total of 7 cc's - good restriction but loosened over time 4th fill - added 1 cc for a total of 8 cc's - good restriction Next week will be 1 year with the Realize band and I have lost 2/3 rds of my weight. Hopefully, with this restriction, will be able to have the rest of the weight off by summer.

Dr. Mark Shina - Charlestown, Indiana (southern Indiana close to Louisville, KY) $12,500 included the following: hospital, surgeon, anesthesiologist, nutritionist, psychiatrist, along with 1 year of Dr. appointments and fills.

Thanks so much for posting these thoughts. I have only had my band since January but have experienced many of the same issues. It's very helpful to read postings such as this one and realize that we are not alone in our struggles.

The self pay price includes everything related to the surgery (hospital, surgeon, anesthesiologist, nutritionist, psychiatrist, and the first year of fills). The psychiatrist did want her money up front so I paid her at the appt and then they deducted the cost from the total. That was the only up front cost that I had to pay. The balance of the payment was due by the day of the surgery. I had my first fill last Thursday and they do it with a fluoroscope to make sure everything is right before you leave. The price doesn't include a visit to the cardiologist and the pulmonologist. Even though my insurance didn't cover the surgery, it did cover these visits and I only had to pay my $20 co-pay for each one. Dr. Shina's program manager can be reached at 1-888-744-4898. He will answer your questions and/or set you up for the seminar. If you decide to go forward with the surgery, the nursing staff will make all of your appointments after that. I don't know if I can post a website on this forum but you can find their website by searching for - Dr. Shina right weigh bariatric center. Hope this info helps.

marglikeracin, I had my surgery done at St. Catherine Regional Hospital with Dr. Shina in Charlestown, Indiana. It's about a 1 1/2 hour drive south of Indy. I first checked into their program because it was the least expensive self pay - $12,500 - that I could find in Indiana. In researching him, I found that he had done over 1800 bariatric surgeries so he's very experienced. I had my surgery on January 29th. The surgery went well, the staff was always helpful and all of the nurses were great. I can't say enough good things about my experiences with them. Make sure you check them out.

Dear Bella, I don't know the details of the pre op diet yet. My plans had been to have the surgery in February. I had my doctor consultation on 12/11. Then I had appointments with the pulmonologist and the psychiatrist. Both gave their approval but I still have to see the nutritionist and the cardiologist. The nurse from the doctor's office called yesterday and asked if I would want to have the surgery on January 29th due to a cancellation. I told her sure but I didn't have all of my necessary appointments done. She said that wasn't a problem that she would schedule them for the same day and call me back on Monday. She said the only other thing was a two week pre op diet but I don't know the details at this time. It's really nice to talk to someone having surgery on the same day. It doesn't seem real to me yet because I had been expecting a February surgery but I am really excited about it. I see you are from Australia! My 17 year old daughter visited Australia two years ago on a People to People Student Ambassador trip. She loved everything about Australia.

I had expected my surgery to be in February but the doctors office called yesterday and said they had an opening for January 29th. What a nice surprise! I am having it done by Dr. Shina at Saint Catherine Regional Hospital in Charlestown, Indiana.

I found out my surgery date yesterday - January 29th in Charlestown, Indiana. I am starting today to try to change my eating habits even though the pre-op diet doesn't officially start until 2 weeks before the surgery date.

I'm from northern Indiana (Fort Wayne area). My insurance denied coverage so I decided to proceed with the self-pay route. I went to several bariatric doctor seminars in the Indy and northern Indiana area but finally decided on Dr. Shina in Charlestown, Indiana. (close to Louisville, Ky) It's a 4 hour drive for me but I really liked his seminar and his experience. (number of surgeries performed) His staff was very nice and went out of their way to schedule as many as possible of the required evaluations (nutritionist, psych, pulmonologist, and cardiologist) on the same day so I only had to drive down there twice. It also helped that they offered a self-pay price of $12,500. My lap band surgery is scheduled for January, 29th. Renae