julier

I paid $10,700 8-8-06 with Dr Rambaut. He has done far more than any USA surgeon and trained many of them. He started doing this in i think1997. He is in Monterrey Mexico. The hospital was incrediable as well as the whole experience. I know you family will think OH NO NOT MEXICO, but im telling yah i couldnt have had a better procedure. I met many new friends as we all were in the same hotel until and after surgery. Dr Rambaut is a bandster as well and is so wonderful!

You bet from my mom. I took her out to lunch and told her what i was doing and all was fine. She was excited for me. Then she had her physical therapist tell her that i was doing what i perseive she thought was a gastric bypass and all went down hill. We have not talked since as she just said to many wrong things and got really ugly. Ignorance is not bliss, i tell ya. And as for your husband! Mine supported me 100% and boy is he happy! I have lost 30#s and have 30# to go! I now am in a size 10 from a 14 and can wear sexy things that he dreamed about me wearing. My confidence is on the roof and my spirit is healing from my insecurities from the past. You are young it sounds like to make this decision. If you have tried faithfully other avenues and failed and you are a volume eater then this will probably be sucessful. But realize and be sure that if you are consuming your calories from liquids (includes chocolate, liquor) then to be careful in choosing the lapband. In closing! Do what is right for you. I am turning 50 next year and thankful that i found this before i loose all my elatisity. If i had known about this back 6 to 8 years ago i would have done it in a heart beat. :clap2:

Do the heating pad every evening,and in the morning if you are having coffee and reading paper. I would have on low with a pillow behind it against me when i went to sleep. I also got those instint hot pads that attach to your skin and wore those all day. WORKS!:clap2:

Before i was at 2.1 suposedly but weird that when he pulled the fluids back out before the fill it was only 1cc. So he said probably the other 1.cc was in the primer. I guess that the band takes 1cc before it even starts to close. So before this fill i could eat to much. I was able to eat fairly large bites and didnt have much restriction. I was also able to eat about 1&1/2 cup of food. Now i can only eat about 1/3 cup of food and it has to be mush. Is it true that we do have some evaporation in our fills? I think if i was just a tad less i would be fine. In the meantime i have dropped 5 lbs in 1 week and dont mind the drop but cant continue this fast.

it scared me to feel this grapefruit size lump around the port area. I called the doc and he calmed me right down. Said it was saroma and to get a heating pad on it as often as possible and massage it. Took me 60 days about for it to go away but it did;) So warm baths and heating pad!!! It feels good and works fine

last friday morning i had my 2nd fill bringing me to 2.5 in a 4cc band. i can only eat extememly soft food. I cannot even eat a hardboiled egg unless i mush it up with milk. If i try to eat anything like minced chicken it is a 45 minute process with mini bites...If i do get to big a piece going down it is 10 min of pain and threat of vomiting with hot flashes. ANY ONE HAVE THIS GOING ON?:help: I like the fact that i am eating about 1/3 of what i was prior to last week but my calorie count per day is only about 700. I would like to just revert to Protein shakes for Breakfast and eat my small itty bitty portions later in the day of soft food. But is it bad to not eat reg food at this point and should i have some Fluid taken out? before i was not loosing but maybe 1 lb every two weeks.

i asked that question of my surgery doc and then again with my fill doc in USA. Surgery doc said it actually will hold 5cc and called it a 5cc band on my surgery paperwork. My fill doc said that they are meant to be filled to 4cc and that some writtings suggest that a doctor could fill up to 5cc but that would really be stretching it.

i can tell you that i am experiencing something close. i had my second fill on a 4cc band friday. I was not able to do anything but fluids as well. Cream of wheat was my first trial on Sunday as i just needed something more than a protein shake. Last night i had about 2 tbsps of mashed potatoe, 10 canned greenbeans, and about1/2 ounce of chicken shredded in my coffee grinder. It took me almost 45 min to eat that and it was a bit painful. I ate little tiny bites. I learned alot from my new doc that i didnt from the first fill doc. but i was not allowed to eat anything even soft actually until tommorrow, i have been truly very careful. I did PB a bit and came close to upchucking once. it seems to be calming down. Cold jello is very soothing by the way:hungry:

I was filled the 1st and only time in a 4cc band at 2.1. It seems to be very close to perfect. Cancelled a appointment for a second fill as i had a cold :sick that week. Now i am glad i didnt go. I am loosing about 1lb a week maybe a little less. Started at approx 207 and now at 185 this morning. Had a couple of weeks of up and down weight due to vacation, travel and illness. But all and all when i :hungry: right, i am loosing without much difficulty and unfortunately just a couple hours of arobic exercise a week. That is something i must ad at least 1 more day of. banded 8-8-06

It was painless for me and took about 2 minutes. I was in and out so fast i felted cheated by the expense:heh:

Ihave the Inamed 9.75 cm (5cc balloon size) I dont see it mentioned when everyone is talking about their band. I hear about the 4cc or 10cc. Anyone know if i have an oddball size. :help:

has anyone used fillcenters usa? I went to their site so i can go to the tampa fill center. They want me to put in my ssi number, my husbands ssi number, insurance carriers, where i work, who i work for and lots and lots of info. When i try to call the Tampa office i cannot go direct to that office. when i did call and told the person on the other end of the line that i didnt understand the reason for asking the no less than 50,60 and probably more questions, he just said dont do it then. So i just hung up phone.

Don't be scared, I had one surgery in my life.. My tonsils at age 5. I was nerveous but as soon as i met the others that were having it done i totally relaxed. I walked in with confidence to the surgery room. 15 min later i was given a happy pill and all was downhill from there. Don't eat any food and if you smoke stop.. Evidently makes it easier on recovery. Shoot i was out the next morning and in my comfy bed in hotel room.:notagree

I am going to go for 8lbs in October banded 8-8-06 first fill 9/25/06 2.1 on a 5cc inamed band start wt 204/188/135

On flying there should be no problems, i was banded on the 8th of aug and flew home three days after. Of course we went through customs hell because that is when they banned the liquids and airport security was code orange. now that was fun!. My new friend justy who was banded the same day did it together.

Hi ladies, I went on a trip to an island this weekend and unfortunately had champagne and drinks two nights in a row. So going home tonight, i will not be getting on that darn scale. I always retain fluids for 48 hours after any alchol. But now i can eat from home. )<:

Thanks Rita, I dunno where to find it but you did good on listing your info :confused: For anyone about to do a fill, for me it took 3 minutes to get. I didnt feel the needle at all. Doctor didn't even get to introduce herself. Well she wasnt real warm and fuzzy kuzz i am a Mexico bandster i think. And now i havent pushed it but geeze i think i am eating about 1/2 of what i was eating before the fill which is 1/2 of what i was eating before the band.:wow2: Big differnce. Estimate is 1/2 to 3/4 cup of food. I can tell i have to be very careful so i don't get that awful pain that one gets with too big of bite. So i am really excited:clap2: about this next week! Let's keep in touch..:typing:

Hi August bandsters. Just had my first fill on Monday. 1st one 2.1cc:clap2: on a 9.75/5cc band. Feels pretty good. I kind of know what a gurgle sound is now. Started out at 203lbs and now at 189lbs. Hey where do i find that cool weigh scale to put in my weight loss, can someone show me?:phanvan

:help: i was banded on 8-8-06. About 10 days ago i started to notice a tenderness and swelling above my port scar. I have no fever nor does the incision look infected. But this is a bit painful and gets harder as the day progresses. At night i take a bath or two and it seems to soften the swollen area and also take the swelling down. I have provided my doc pictures but we keep missing each other. Anyone have any thoughts. I am leaving in two day and need to know what i am dealing with here.

My surgery was on 8-8-06. about 10 days ago i noticed significant swelling above my port scar. I have no fever and the scar seems fine. The swelling though movable is hard kind of. When i get up in the morning it is better and then gets worse throughout the day. at night i take long baths which seems to sooth it and take down the swelling. It is uncomfortable and worries me a bit. I have been trying to get with my doc (Dr.Rambaut) but we have missed each other. I am trying to get info before i go on two weeks of travel. Anyone able to identify what maybe going on? Thks :help: