Gaffer

I was supposed to get a fill on that day as well, but the clinic kinda dropped the ball (they fixed it since), so I will be having a fill on Friday March 23. I am looking forward to it because I have been feeling pretty hungry lately. Good luck. Andrew

It's all cool. She knows that she was in the wrong but she is type of person that will not learn from this. I will not ge able to change her so what ever. She is out of the circle for good. She is the one that will be missing out. I cant be bothered to waste energy and time thinking about it. Andrew

That is good that the Optifast is going well for you. I had not seen you on here complaining about it so it could not be that bad. I found pickles were my saving grace on pre-op diet. I ate a whole costco size jar in a week or so. Wife thought I was crazy, or more then usual. 20lbs is still pretty good, it is a nice head start. Blood, sweat and no beers. I like that. I have been hankering for a beer, red wine just hasnt replaced it yet. Andrew

It will be now sweat, you will be fine. How is the Optifast going? Andrew

I think it depends on your circumstances. Last time when I had lost about 125lbs I talked to my Dr. and told him how much this hanging skin was bothering me. He did say that it could be removed by AHC because it was a quality of life thing. I am not sure if that would be a TT, but it would have been an apron removal. I am going to see my Dr. and see what he thinks my options are once I loose the weight. Andrew

Trust me, I was none too happy. I have only chosen to tell those people who I know will be supportive & understanding. One of which I thought was my SIL. The only members of my own family that know are my parents, not even my brother. She has a long history of this kinda thing, but I thought she had grown up enough to be in the loop. Apparently not, and now I am the d!ck for calling her on it. I was really POed about it because I have no use for her or her family who happen to be friends with my in-laws. Oh well. I am over it, but it has put a strain on our relationship with my wife's brother and his wife. It is too bad, because things were better than they had been in a while. Then she does and flushes it down the tube. Did I mention that I am somehow the jerk in the whole thing? Trust takes a long time to create, and only seconds to destroy. Andrew

I know what you mean. We did not want my wife's family to know so we only told her parents and her brother & his wife. I THOUGHT my sister in law could be trusted. So she blabs and tells her mom, despite being asked not to tell anyone. Her mom blabs it to my inlaw, plus her side of the family and god knows who else. I was so pissed off I was shaking (this is what I do when I get furious). I had my wife call her brother, and he says "You should not have told us becasue you know she was gonna tell her mom" and proceeds to get angry at my wife:crazy: :welldoneclap: :Banane20: . So now everybody knows which is not what I wanted. Needless to say she is out of the circle. Andrew

Banding in Canada will commonly run about $16,000 CAD, but there are a couple who will be about $13,000 CAD. The clinic that I had mine done at was here www.lapband.ca . They may only operate on Canadains though so you lay want to check that. Mine was $16,000. Also, there is Dr. Kirshebaum (sp?) in Colorado who was about $9500USD which is also a good deal. Do a search for him I think he is at www.lapbandrockies.com . Andrew

All you guys will do fine. I remember it was not too long that I was going through all those feelings of guilt, excitement, concern and trying to focus on ourselves for a change. You are not only doing this for yourself, but you are also doing it for those you love. Remember that you are not saying good bye to all you favoirite foods, you are just saying "see you later in more reasonable portions". Also remember that you will find new favorite foods. Last week I discovered I love sweet potatoes, who knew. I have had them more in the last 3 days than all my life. My wife thinks it is hilarious since I would have turned my nose up at them preop. Andrew

Anyone can go to the Weight Loss Centre in Missasauga. It is a private clinic where I had mine done. If you are having trouble in BC and are slef pay you can go out of province. I am in Calgary and will be using Dr. Mitchell here for fills. Andrew

That sucks. They were pretty good about it when I paid for mine. Andrew

About 30 of that was lost in 3 weeks of Optifast preop. Andrew

I dont think that if you are doing a self pay that you will need a refferal. I was banded in Toronto on a selaf pay, and did not need one. There was some involvment from my GP filling out medical history etc. Ask the clinic that you cal. From what I have read, there is no help from the province in BC. Andrew

That sucks, I paid for all mine with Visa at Dr. Coburn's clinic in Febraury. I suspect they were getting nailed for merchant fees, which in there case ould be about 2% of the bill. Andrew

I paid for everything with my CC, surgery, flights, hotel, cabs. I got about $200 worth of gift cards as a result of the points I collected from it. I pretty much pay for everything with the CC to collect points for it. I used Dr. Coburn's clinic. The card I wanted to use did not have a high enough limit so I sent them 3 CC authorizations for the total amount and they were fine with that. Totally worth it, Andrew

LOL. Thanks, that was pretty funny. I am afraid I am no longer allowed to be in the same room as a donut as I may revert back to my ways. No need to worry about the Starbucks donut. Who can afford that crap. Manhood Check-up *So what if I drive a BMW, I now longer need to make up for short commings with a huge truck. Although one could have been handy for my weekend trips to the Home Depot (I prefer Totem, but I am sure no one on this board would know what that is) *Talking after sex? She wont have the energy to talk when I'm done:heh: *Books - I heard of those. Aren't they like big magazines with fewer pictures. You wont be too far away, and then you will have to get your own box of Timbits for Mrs. CanMacDaddy. Andrew

I have an office type job, and I had my surgery on Wednesday Feb.14 and went back to work on the 26th. I think I could have gone back sooner, but my boss was really good and told me to take all the time off. Andrew

I think that we all go through the farewell tour. I know for me it was about 4 weeks of self induced food torture now that I look back at it. I beat my body into submission to get ready for my new life. Congrats on making the decision. Dr. Coburn's team is great, and I felt really looked after with them. As for the diet coke, I had a 6-10 can a day habit, 2-3 litres a day on the weekend, and I was able to kick that. Trust me, after the first few days you will feel great. I could not believe what that crap was making me feel like. It totally made me hungrier. Andrew

The clinics in AB do not allow you self pay. I tried, and they told me no. To get a band in AB right now, you have to wait for the system, 3-5 years. AB health does help. I was able to claim back $1036, not much for the $16,000 plus I spent going to Toronto. Some people that went to Mexico were able to get back ~$1700 due to out of country rate differences, vs out of province. Make sure you find a fill provider BEFORE you commit to Mexico. I think there are some people who are having difficluty getting a fill provider in Alberta. One thing to also consider it the "warranty" that comes with you band. I know that with the Canadian clinic you have some recourse should you have problems with your port, leaky band/tubing or other problems. I dont know if Mexican clinics offer that. Andrew

I am from Calgary (raised in High River, lived in Lethbridge for 8 years) & was recently banded in Toronto by Dr.Coburn. I am only a little over a month post op but here is a short list of pros & cons. Pro's: - More energy - Feeling better - Eczyma improved - Fewer headaches, body aches - sleep better - Lost 46lbs since my pre-op diet began Jan.24 - Better mood, sleeping better Con's - None yet. I dont even consider the cost of the surgery or the pain from it (which was less than I thought) as a con. I would do the whole thing again in a minute. In terms of your options in Albertan I will copy whay I wrote in another post. All the bands that are being done in Calgary being paid for by Alberta Health Care, and we dont have the option of paying the Calgary Docs to do ours. The Calgary Clinic is limited to doing 25 bands per year, and this is the first year that they are being done. My Dr. was the one that trained the Calgary Docs, and he told me that they did 12/25 bands for 2006 when he was here to train them. If you want to have your band done in Calgary you must meet certain criteria for BMI & co-morbitities, be refered by you family Dr., be accepted by the clinic, go through a 6 month supervised weight managment program and be prepared to wait 1.5 years to get a consult and another 2.5 before surgery. Getting a band in Alberta is really tough right now. I personally was not willing to wait that long, so had to do a self pay in Toronto. There is no option for self pay in Alberta at this time. I dont know your particulars, but if you need accountability, the band is the best thing in the world for that. Better than what any spouse or friend can provide. We have all been on the losing end of the diet roller coaster here, and I for one am happy to put an end to it. Hope this helps, Andrew

For me the ole pencil did get some lead added to it. Mrs. Gaffer has confirmed that by telling me she does not know what she will do when I lose more weight. Yet another postitive side effect of the band. Andrew

You likely have the large Inamed AP (Advance Platform) band which is the same on that I have. I know that they use it in Australia and Canada (where I am). Mine is the large & will hold 14cc. Here is a thread about this band. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/ap-bandits-t24564.html?t=24564 Andrew

That is great JLB, I am really happy that you were able to make it work for you. May 9 will be here in no time. Keep us up to date with how it is going. Andrew

I do what I can. Tell Mr. Yoda that he must have a highly developed, and finely tuned sense of humour. Just dont let it go to his head Andrew

I have been banded a short time, and have already had some of these issues, although the wait staff have not been so rude. If I am asked I just say I had a big Breakfast or late lunch and that seems to solve the problem. I always just order a Water to have there so they stop bugging me about drinks. I love the Jehovah's waitress comment too. Cracked me up. It does sound like people are more rude toward large women though. I cant imagine them pulling some of this crap with me, because they would find out about it in their tip, or lack thereof, and from thier manager. Andrew