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My thoughts are with you. This is so horrible. Wishing you the best possible outcome.

Jacqui - I am concerned that you actually know what drain cleaner tastes like! LOL

I went for a fill today so I asked about this.It wasn't my surgeon but one of his team. The response left me even more confused. I was told that although the band slows down the passage of food into the lower stomach that it actually moves through quite quickly. It isn't really sitting in there for long.Which would mean that when you get the stuck feeling that the food probably is trying to get through the stoma. The problem with this is that this seems to be different to what we have been told about how the band works.I said this and was told that yes there is the mechanical part but there also seems to be something else that the band does to make us satisfied that they(or this particular fill person) don't yet fully understand. That somehow the position of the band is making us feel full even if the food is not sitting there. Still looking forward to reading the explanations that you have got from your Dr's. Please don't forget to keep us updated.

I asked about carbonated drinks at my appointment today and was told that so long as they are low cal I can have them. Obviously I shouldn't drink them if they cause me problems but if they don't then its OK. Plus of course water is preferable .

I've never liked Mc Donalds as most of the food there doesn't even resemble food although with the wraps and things now on offer it has improved. If I eat a burger it has to be made of meat, not plastic and I also prefer it not to be so greasy that it slides off the very sweet tasting excuse for a roll! This can be said about lots of things. Smoking, drugs etc etc

I had an overnight stay , which is fairly standard procedure here in Australia.

Never mind beer I am wondering if i can manage a glass of champagne.The Melbourne Cup(horse race) is coming up and a glass of champagne is practically compulsory!

Remember the band is only a tool, you still have to play your part. Make healthy food choices and stop eating when you have had the correct sized portion. If you are waiting for an I feel full signal before you stop eating then you are probably going to overeat. Instead of I feel full aim for I have eaten enough and don't feel hungry anymore. I was banded on 2 June and don't have a full feeling. But if I stop when I think I have eaten enough I can normally last quite a while before getting hungry again.

In my opinion - and it is just that, an opinion - the band is not on the way out. For some strange reason the experience in the USA seems to be very different to that here in Australia.Why I have no idea. Now I am not saying that it is problem free here but the percentage of problems here seems to be a lot lower and it is still the preferred surgery. Maybe it is because aftercare here is easily accessible and not expensive. Maybe it is because Australian Dr's prefer a conservative rather an aggressive fill schedule. maybe it is something else. I know a number of people here that have had their bands for longer than 3 years and are very happy. I know of others that have had them a lot longer. Some have had to have them replaced but they chose to have them replaced not to revise to something else. It may turn out that the sleeve is the perfect WLS surgery. It may be discovered in the future that there are problems with the sleeve that are not yet apparent.They may discover some other magical cure.Whatever. Whatever the future holds we don't know. But in the meantime the band is a safe and effective surgery and it should not just be written off. The most important thing as has been said many times before is to do your research and find the WLS that suits you. Pick your surgeon very carefully and then make sure you stick to the recommendations that your surgeon has given you.

Congrats on your weight loss and on being so happy but please be really careful. Being overfilled and eating so little can be the cause of lots of problems.

I have seen the term band intolerance a number of times on various threads. Can someone please explain what exactly it is? i.e what is causing the reaction etc

Thanks for that.That's another thing ticked off on my list of things to do. I love holidays but i hate all the preparation beforehand. I also hate the journey to get there. Flying is not my favourite thing especially not with a teenage son who gets airsick!

I am going to be in Durban in Dec and was wondering if there are any lapband Dr's in the area in case I encounter any problems and need an unfill. Hopefully I will be fine but i would like to be prepared and have names and numbers just in case.

If you need help post a thread in the general forums. If you post in a blog you are not likely to get a lot of response.

I have a friend who has been using these. She say's the bowl is great. Personally I don't feel it is necessary to spend the extra money, I find it quite easy to dish up correct size portions on a normal plate.I also know quite a few people who use a side plate rather than a full size dinner plate.

That doesn't sound right. Possibly you are too tight and need to go for a small unfill.You don't want to end up getting dehydrated.

Just wondering if someone can please give me a recipe for iced tea - low cal of course. I love the stuff and it has to be cheaper and probably better for you to make your own rather than buy it. TIA

You need to be very careful of guys that get jealous when you talk to or look at another guy. It can escalate into a major problem and I am talking from experience although it was a hell of a long time ago now.

I would have thought the concern was clots rather than infection. Although being on a plane you are likely to pick up any kind of respiratory infections that are going around due to the confined space and recycled air and you wouldn't really want to get one of those after surgery.

He may be an excellent surgeon but as is the case with excellent surgeons he may have unrealistic expectations in other area's. Its not even the 3 minute rule that concerns me although that's hard enough it's the 3 bites per meal. But as has often been said you have to be comfortable with and trust your doc. So if you do that is great. I just have to ask though - how do you cope with only eating 3 bites per meal /9 bites per day?

Plus the pic on the Doc's website doesn't match the written info. There is no way that plate of food the model is holding only has three bites. So should you believe the pic, the info or just realise that what this guy say's is an utter load of garbage and go and find yourself another doc!

Is this Doc for real? Only 3 bites of food per meal - that wouldn't even feed a hamster. Info like this makes you wonder about the surgeon and their qualifications. I'd like to see the doc try this him/her self WLS or not and see how long they survive!

Wondering if you have seen your doc and if you have an answer for us yet?

I think that container might be called a spitoon. Glad it didn't get that far!

I do not believe that this is true. The intention is that you should be able to eat anything. Yes some have problems but not everyone - you have to be careful to not be too tight.