BlubbiBlubb

Do you Blog? I started a Blog about my lap-band-journey and would love to follow your stories of success as well. Especially since you are all banded (going to be banded) in September. You can read my blog here: My Life in Lap-Band-Land Please share yours as well :-)

I had an infection and the pain was unbearable, the area was red and hot to the touch. The pain was really bad, I could not wear any pants that touched the area and the port area was extremely sensitive. At any rate, I would still call the surgeon again and if the pain gets any worse ask them to move your appointment up so it can be checked. Best of luck!

Lucky you :-) Congratulations :-) I have not posted in a while, I had an infection and 2 more surgeries for port removal and to put the port back. Never expected it to happen to me... but it's all healed and well and the band is working great. Have lost 79 lb since September and have 61 to go.

You are very welcome! Glad to hear that you are feeling better. Best of luck on your journey :smile2:

Hi Monroe :-) Welcome to Lapbandtalk! I just got a notification because I subscribed to this threat and even though I frequent lapbandtalk I have never realized that someone accused Dr. Feiz of being a scam. I cannot believe that someone would come on here and accuse Dr. Feiz of something like this. This is the rudest thing I have ever read and I am really taken aback by such comments. At the same time it makes me wonder why this person posted only once on lapbandtalk? If she was really scammed (which I highly doubt) then she would be posting her entire experience, wouldn't she?. I highly doubt the person's authenticity. After all, this is a public message board and anyone can post anything without any kind of verification. You have to ask yourself, what is a scam? A scam would be someone that tells patients that a lapband was put in, charges the patient for it when in fact no lapband was put in. This would be a scam. And this is sooo not the case... because I am one of his patients and I do have a lapband! :-) Monroe, which office are you dealing with? I am dealing with his Beverly Hills office and the girls there are great. I really love them. They are very organized, very friendly and they never dropped the ball. My insurance (Anthem Blue Cross) approved surgery within a couple of days. They covered 100% of the hospital charges (in-network) and 70% of Dr. Feiz fees (out of network). I have not been billed a dime more than what my insurance plan specified and only paid the remaining 30% My insurance paid 100% of all the pre-check-ups such as upper endoscopy, blood tests, x-rays, physical, etc. Go with your intuition, I find Dr. Feiz to be great and his after care is top notch. Even if something goes wrong (most likely not) but in my case it happened because I had an infection... I can attest that he will be there and makes you his number 1 priority and helps you through any difficulties you may occur. Best of luck to you and hopefully you will get some more answers from other patients... because I can really understand that you are worried (been there, done that) and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

I have not been online for a while because I had an infection in the port area and had my port removed 9 days ago. No idea what happened and how it happened, all I know is that it was very painful. Luckily my surgeon was able to clip the tubing so I still have my restriction however I would love to get another fill soon. But a little restriction is still better than no restriction at all, so I am thankful for that. No idea when I will get my port back but I truly hope soon :-) I am happy that all are doing well, wow Amanda, you have really dropped a serious amount of weight, congratulations!

@hmarko Sorry for not responding right away. I think your are doing fine with the food, I realized over the last couple of days that I can eat certain foods one day and can't eat them on another day. In the end I believe it comes all down to proper chewing. When I am really hungry I tend to eat a little faster but when I chew everything properly I can get almost anything down. I am sure you have met with your surgeon by now, what did she say? Did she give you another fill? I am doing great on my second fill but unfortunately get some shoulder pain when eating. No idea what causes it, but will monitor it as well as the port pain that I am having for the last couple of days. Cannot wait until we have everything figured out and know what is considered "normal" and what not. Again, sorry for not responding right away. Happy weekend!

Hi aprillynn, I know exactly what you are going through because I have been there a couple of months ago and did a lot of research on surgeons within the L.A. area. I have found a wonderful surgeon, his name is Dr. Michael Feiz and I would not recommend anyone else but him. He is the best, very approachable, very friendly and will be there for you all the way and help you to succeed. His aftercare is outstanding and I feel very blessed that I have found him. I had my lap-band surgery in September and I have no complaints whatsoever. His office is in Beverly Hills, but he also has other locations throughout the greater Los Angeles area. Let me know if you have any questions. Best of luck.

Hmarko, no, my surgeon does not tell his patients the fill amount and I did not ask because it does not really matter to me as long as I have a restriction. I have the 10cc Lapband as well. I had very good restriction after the first fill and it subsided after about 2 weeks. My surgeon does not pre-schedule fill appointments and he wants his patients to call once they can eat more food than the size of 2 decks of cards. This is what happened to me, I was able to eat more and was hungry between meals. I have never been borderline tight and have never PBd but I do get stuck once in a while especially when I eat too fast or do not chew enough. Beef causes severe problems and white chicken meat needs to be chewed until liquefied. I can eat about 3/4 of the size of 2 decks of cards. When you say that you are able to eat a lot on some days what do you consider a lot? I learned that I am much tighter after a workout and also when I have a stressful/emotional day and I am tighter in the evening than in the morning and throughout the day. Sorry that I am writing a novel. What I want from the lap-band is that it restricts my food intake to the size of 2 decks of cards max and that the food will satisfy me for at least 4 hours. I assume every one has different needs and there are also people that want to feel extreme restriction and be limited to a couple of bites. I was very confused about the entire restriction thing for a while because there are so many different opinions on the subject... I guess everyone has to figure out what kind of a restriction works for them... The best thing is to keep the appointment with your surgeon and to discuss the restriction with her. Let me know how it is going for you.

I really have to give big shout-out to Dr. Feiz and to make sure that everyone knows what a wonderful surgeon he is. If anyone is looking for the greatest lap-band surgeon within the greater Los Angeles area Dr. Feiz is the one you want to go to. Before I selected him as my surgeon I did a lot of research and met with several other lap-band surgeons but none of them convinced me like Dr. Feiz did. I had my surgery done by Dr. Michael Feiz in September and I feel very blessed that I have found him. He is very approachable, very friendly and a true medical professional. He answers all questions and never gets annoyed if you ask the same question over and over again...and most importantly he will always give you the same answer. With Dr. Feiz it is not only about safe surgery and tiny incisions, it is also about success... he wants all his patients to succeed and to lose weight. For me the most important deciding factor on a surgeon was that I was dealing with someone that puts my health and well-being as his #1 priority, performs safe surgeries and does everything within his powers to ensure success. And since the success with lap-band relies on good aftercare and especially proper adjustments it was important to me to go with a surgeon that can and will offer that. Unfortunately there are also surgeons that will "sell" you a surgery but you will be left alone waiting weeks and months to get in for an adjustment. Good aftercare is essential if you want to succeed with a lap-band and Dr. Feiz offers the best aftercare that you can possibly find. It has been 7 weeks since my surgery took place and I had to see him 3 times since for post-op check-up and adjustments. He takes his time, never rushes and has a very special technique to give you the proper fill level/restriction right from the beginning. Unlike other surgeons that will drag their patients for many months of very tiny fills which leaves them with little to no restriction. Not so with Dr. Feiz... he makes sure that you get all the benefits of your Lap-Band right from the beginning, have good restriction and lose weight right away. His office staff is very organized and very friendly. They never failed to return a call, they are very easy to talk to and will always make arrangements to get you in for an adjustment within a short period of time. My surgery was 7 weeks ago, I have already lost 28 pounds, 1 pants size and I could not be happier with the results. If you are looking for a surgeon within the Los Angeles area you should definitely meet with Dr. Michael Feiz and/or attend one of his seminars. He is the very best and I promise that you won't be disappointed.

I had my second fill on Tuesday. I scheduled another fill appointment because my restriction was wearing off. Still doing mushy food and can feel better restriction. Totally forgot to eat lunch today... only had an oatmeal for Breakfast and filet of sole (mashed) for dinner and was not hungry at all. I love my band <3

Congratulations! You must be very happy. I will never forget they day I received the insurance approval.

I was approved by Anthem 5 days after my surgeon submitted the paperwork. I did not need any pre-op diet. Neither the insurance nor my surgeon required it (except 2 days of full liquid diet before surgery day) I needed a consultation/evaluation with a psychologist and dietitian, which was set up by my surgeon and did not take a lot of time at all. Anthem covered my surgery and all the pre-op testing. I do not know what you mean by "pre-op surgeon consultation" but you will definitely need a consultation (or to attend a seminar) with a surgeon since he will be the one that will submit your paperwork to your insurance. Anthem also requires pre-surgical testing and that surgery will take place in what they consider a Medical Center of Excellence. If you have any questions just let me know.

Unfortunately there were several polls for the nickname, so far I have only seen the sexy september blinkies in signatures and I was not aware of the 909 bandsters suggestion until later. I did not even know that there was a September 2009 sub-forum and when I searched for nickname polls I only found the topic with the suggestions but not the actual poll. Within the September Bandsters Topic (Pre-Surgery Forum) people would constantly ask where the poll was and nobody ever answered so a new one was started. I guess the first poll that you are referring to only ran for a couple of days in early September and most of us were not aware of it's location and never voted on it.

I do not know about the November Bandsters but the September Bandsters voted here: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f84/september-group-name-poll-102389/ and Sexy Septembers won.

I did not measure the time but it went down like it would go down pre-surgery. I do not have any restriction on Water or thin liquids, it goes down perfectly fine. When drinking a heavy Protein shake I have a very small restriction but I do not drink them any longer as they do not keep me full for a long time... I assume they are what is called slider foods.

I had my first fill 8 days ago and it was not done under x-ray and I did not have to drink any bad tasting liquids but Water. He numbed the area while I was laying down, he then put the needle in the port and I had to sit up with the needle still inside and I had to drink 2 cups of water while he was injecting the Fluid into the band... he filled it up until the water was blocked and then taking out some of it so it could go down without any problems... he repeated the same procedure to make sure it was the same amount... I had to drink one more cup of water before I left to make sure the water goes down perfectly fine and that was it. It was not painful at all and I had to stay on liquids for 2 days and then 2 days of mushy food. I am eating solid foods since Saturday and I feel a good amount of restriction, I cannot eat any beef (no matter how soft and no matter how much sauce is on it) I tried it twice and it got stuck both times. Last night it took me an hour to recover from being stuck. It is not a pleasant feeling at all. My portions are really small and after eating I am not hungry for 4-5 hours. Even my appetite is gone. I have to chew everything very good and it takes me forever to finish my food. This part is more difficult than I thought. I have lost 5 pounds since my fill and the most part of it was lost since eating solid foods. I do not know the amount of the fill... My Doctor believes that it is best for me not to obsess with the fill amounts and even though I was disappointed in that very moment, I have to agree with him. Whatever the fill amount is, it works pretty good for me. Good luck to all of you and keep us informed how you are doing after your fills.

Since I did not find a Poll for the September 2009 Group name. here we go. September Bandsters please submit your vote! PS: The names are not from me but from another topic were September Bandsters where brain storming for names.

Yes, we were banded the same day :-) I am completely pain free... I do not feel any pain at all... not while working out, after working out or while being inactive. I felt a little soreness in my arms and legs after the first day working out but no pain/discomfort in the port area. If you feel discomfort I would take it very easy and do only as much as you feel comfortable. I agree to not aggravate it too much. Most likely the pain/discomfort will subside. Remember, this time is still our healing time. What are you wearing while working out? Make sure that the pants are not too tight. When I wore my jeans (rather tight around the waist) for the very first time the button would press on my port area and I was sore afterward. It was not painful, more like getting a bruise. It only lasted a day or so... and since then I never had any problems. Let me know how it goes tomorrow. :seeya:

For the last 4 days I am doing 30 minutes on the Elliptical... I always chose a program that lets me walk up hills and down and the high resistance does not have any negative side effects on me. I asked my surgeon about swimming... he said that I could swim... so in addition to the elliptical I swim 30 minutes as fast as I can and follow it up with 15 minutes of aqua-gymnastics which also includes working out my abs.

Best of luck to all October Bandsters! I was banded two weeks ago (9/11/09) and all went well. Surgery was easier than I anticipated. You will do it! Looking forward to your success stories!

I think it is working again, I can see the followers list on your blog and also on mine :biggrin:

I am still on the liquid diet (since 15 days) and I am hungry at times but I have no appetite... just the thought of another tomato soup makes me sick... Yes, I am craving textured food.... I just cooked Dinner for my husband and that salad looked sooooo delicious... but there is no way I will cheat... 1 more day to go and on Friday I can have mushy food for the first time. I am soooo looking forward to a scrambled egg :thumbdown:

Yes, unfortunately I have lost mine as well :smile2:

Hi Debbie, I think every surgeon does it differently. Some people are allowed all kinds of liquids (as long as they are liquids) others have to follow strict guidelines. I would call the surgeon or the dietician to find out what you can have and what not, just to make sure that you follow YOUR surgeons directions correctly. I had to do a 2 day pre-op clear liquid diet and I am currently doing a 2 week post-op full liquid diet. I am not allowed to have jello at all. But these are the guidelines MY surgeon gives ME and since every surgeon and every case is different I would really get in touch with your surgeon or his/her staff to clarify your questions. Good luck on your journey!