Irishmist

Way to go Mandi:cheer2: great that you reached your goal, plus that little extra, makes it all worth while.:whoo: :whoo: Maria:)

Good Morning Cloe:wave: About the plastic surgery, I believe your doctor has to give a medical reason for the tummy tuck, that way Ohip will pay for it, everything else you pay for yourself. I am not a hundred percent sure of this though, maybe someone else would know. If you interested go up to the Cosmetic & Reconstructive Surgery Forum, a gal from Australia just posted pictures of her tummy tuck, she looks great, quite a scar though :ohwell: At least it lets us know what to expect. Maria;-)

Not a problem Neenagh, just glad you are okay.....well as okay as it is possible to be on Optifast. Please do not eat the children:hungry: what will Dr.Mumford think on day of surgery :omg: LOL :laugh :laugh :pound: Maria:)

Neenagh, So nice to hear from you again, I was wondering what happened to you, we had not heard from you for a while. Actually I did not mind the Optifast, I had to do it for 3 weeks, the last few days before the surgery date were the worst, the chocolate flavor I did not mind but, the vanilla one I got sick of. Two more weeks for you Neenagh, are you getting excited, it will be the start of a whole new life for you. :clap2: Maria:)

Hi Tarmac Glad to hear you decided to go with Dr.Cobourn you will not be disappointed with him. 4 to 6 weeks sounds about right. I know what you mean about feeling embarassed, I failed at every diet I started, so no I did not want anyone to know about the lap band surgery, just my family members and one friend who encouraged me to go for it. The pictures are called avatars, if you click on User CP you will get a scroll down menu, click on Edit Avatar, and scroll through until you find something you like, check it and then on the bottom of the page click on save changes. Some of the people have their own personal pictures by their name, that I do not know how to do. Maria:)

Mandi, I was thinking about you today while you were in Toronto. Hope your trip and your fill went well for you. I did not want to wait until I arrived home from work tomorrow, to let you know I was wishing for the best for you:girl_hug: Maria:)

Hello Taymac, Welcome to the lap band site, the only experience i have is with Dr. Cobourn at the Surgical Weight Loss Program at The Plastic Surgery Clinic in Mississauga. I can tell you my own experience with him, I found him to be a very kind and understanding Dr. as well as having a great bedside manner. Other lap banders have also had great experience at the TLBC clinic in Toronto. I have no knowledge of fill Dr's. in South Western Ontario, but what ever clinic you decide to go with should be able to tell if there are any.Yes the clinic that you choose to do your surgery will do fills at no cost. Another Dr. may charge you to do fills, I do not know what the cost would be for that. I had my surgery in May, and I will tell you it was the best decision I have ever made. After failing at so many diets, this tool has helped me a lot. I am very happy with my decision. As for fills, you do not need fills every month, you only need them if you are having no restriction with your food intake, and the weight is not coming down as it should. The first one is usually done after six weeks, when any swelling from the surgery has gone. I have only had the one fill and for now I do not need another one. Some people do need more than one before they reach enough restriction with their food intake. I hope this helps you a little bit. I am sure other lap banders will give you more info. later. This site is not usually this quiet. Maria:)

Way to go Lanie, you are banded now, how are you doing? This was the best decision I ever made, my only regret is that I did not know about it when I was much younger. Hi Racermom welcome, I found out about lap band surgery on line, I did not hesitate about getting it done, and my husband was all for it, which helps a lot. I did not regret my decision one bit. Maria:)

Kim, the reason you had to follow a diet prior to surgery was not to reduce the SIZE of your liver, it was to reduce the fat content IN your liver The Dr. has to move it to get to your stomach, and when you reduce the fat,it makes it lighter and easier for the Dr.to handle it. Hope this helps you to understand a little better. Maria:)

Hi Argon, just wanted to say good luck on your first day at work tomorrow, the first day is always the worst, but with your personality I am sure everything will go well. At least you will have Dan beside you until you get know other people. Maria Good Luck

Glad everything went well for you Kim, the shoulder pain will go away in a few days, like Cloe suggested take Gas-X for the pain it helps. Maria:)

Those pictures are hilarious,:pound: but I think the cats need lapband surgery LOL:lol: Maria:)

Hi Jude, it is hard to understand how you are not losing, I also track my calories with Spark People, I try not to go over 1000 calories a day. Do you think your thyroid problem may have something to do with your weight gain, maybe ask Dr.Cobourn when you speak with him. Sorry to hear about your mother, hopefully it will get a little easier for you in the next few days. As Cloe and Yoda have already said make your day in Toronto a treat to your self, YOU DESERVE IT. Maria:)

Buffie, I read on another thread that the seaweed wrap can cause problems, only because it is hard to break down enough with chewing for it to pass through the stoma. Maybe you should not eat the seaweed. Maria

Kim, I have overcome many challenges and hardships in my life (Including a bout with breast cancer). I am sure that in itself proves that I am not a WIMP. I joined this forum to get support from other lapbanders on my weight loss journey, not to become a crusader or to be insulted. While the cost of the surgery was equally as difficult for me personally as I am sure it was for many others, I have never complained about it. However if people want to express themselves concerning the cost, they have the right to do so, without been told that "We don't want to hear it". Protesting is a big commitment and requires people to come out of their comfort zones, if they don't choose to meet your challenge it is their right not to do so. Just as it is mine. Maria

Mandi, that is good to hear, it is going to be an expensive fill for you, hopefully this fill will bring you more success and piece of mind. Maria:)

Buffie, how are you doing?, are you handling the popcorn challenge okay?. We have not heard from you for a while, how is your fill going?. Maria:)

Dr. Coburn is a wonderfull dr., he has a great bedside manner and is very understanding. Maria:)

Cloe, you are on your way again, keep up the good work.:clap2: Maria:)

Thank you Yoda, you were awesome as well, way to go:clap2: Maria:)

Well I did what I said I would do walk for thirty minutes, but I had to split it, I could not do it all at one time, I did fifteen minutes at my lunch period, and fifteen minutes after work. This week I will try for twenty minutes at lunch, and twenty minutes after work.:omg: Maria:)

Argon, I think you would burn more calories WALKING "maybe" LOL:D Maria:heh:

Argon, my heart goes out to you:think it must be such a helpless feeling to have no where to turn. If I had the money I would bye you a plane ticket to Toronto to have a fill done by Dr. Cobourn. I do not understand how a fifteen minute fill would take away from a patient who is waiting to have surgery, it does not make any sense. I hope something will work out soon for you, maybe the lady who does her own fills will come through for you. Hang in there (although thats all you can do at this point). Maria:)

No pm yet Mandi Maria:)

For me it would be the salty/crunchy Maria:Banane27: