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I got my surgery done last week by Dr. Julie Kim! She’s actually the first dr to perform bariatric surgery in Massachusetts, if I’m remembering correctly! highly recommend! I went through Mount Auburn Weight Management Center at Mount Auburn Hospital! Good luck, Megan

OMG. I am now 12 weeks prego and starting at 4 weeks all the way to 8 weeks I was puking my guts up. Probably like 20-30 times a day. At the end point, I was just eating to be able to actually throw up food instead of stomach acid. Durring this time, I had 1.2cc in a 4cc band and could not make it out to my local fill center to get an unfill because I was so sick. My OB gave me Zofran (witch is I believe the strongest antinausia med you can take,not positive though) I also got phenergan suppositories since anything going in my mouth was comming right back out. Eventually, I had lost 15lbs and was so dehydrated (and had not peed it 3 days) and fed up I went to the ER and was given 4 bags of IV fluid. Even with all that fluid I still didn't urinate that day or the next morning so I went to my OB and they immediately admitted me and I was in the hospital for 4days on IV's. Upon arrival at the hospital I was immediately seen by a GI doc (due to throwing up blood) and a Bariatric surgeon (due to the band still being filled) They ordered an xray of the band and immediately unfilled the band. Luckily the band had not slipped (THANK GOD!!!!) and after the unfill and 4days and 10lbs of fluid put back into my body I have not thrown up since. It was really rough. So if there is anything I can advise people that are acutally throwing up constantly, make it your first priority to get your band unfilled. I personally think that if my band was unfilled I probably would not have gotten into such bad shape as I was in. I was hoping to actually leave my fill in through out the pregnancy because it was not that tight, but I'd rather be healthy and pregnant than skinny and pregnant. This time baby is priority and not me. Even though this was an accidental pregnancy!!!

FLORIDA - Fill Centers USA 866-345-5872 Please call to find out. Locations in Miami, Tampa, St. Pete, Cross City www.fillcentersusa.com FLORIDA - St. Augustine/ Dr. Robert Marema 904-819-5861 Please call to find out. (Not Confirmed Yet) US Bariatric - St. Augustine - 300 Health Park Blvd, Ste. # 5002, St. Augustine, FL 32086 FLORIDA - Pensacola/ Dr. Jeffrey Lord 850-416-1628 850-416-1515 fax $400 for new patients $115 after that Sacred Heart Hospital, 5151 N. 9th Ave, Pensacola, FL 32584 FLORIDA – Pensacola/ Dr. John David Nye 850-444-4741 $365 office visit $150 for fills Yes Fluoro Baptist Hospital. Possible Insurance will pay for office visit (one time pay). FLORIDA - Duval - Volusia - Jacksonville area/ Dr. Abbas Shariat 904-246-9464 450 for the first one and $250 thereafter. Yes FLORIDA - Tampa area/ Tiffany Jesse 727-584-7666 $400 per fill (Dr. Fee) Hospital charges $350 $400 per fill in office First fill is done with fluoro (subsequent fills can be done w/o) (NEAR TAMPA) 2039 Indian Rocks Rd., Largo, FL 33774 http://www.shedthepounds.com FLORIDA - Tampa/ Sandel’s Health Care Center 813-635-9611 $200 for first fill $125/ fill after $75 extra for fluoro Also fills J&J Bands Sandel’s Health Care Center, 7750 Palm River Rd., Tampa, FL 33619 FLORIDA - Dr. Murr & Dr. Galitin 813-844-7473 Tampa, FL FLORIDA - Kissimmee (Celebration)/ Dr. Keith Kim 407-303-4504 Please call to find out. Bariatric Center at Celebration Health - 400 Celebration Pl., Ste. # A310, Celebration, FL 34747 FLORIDA - Orlando/ Dr. Beltre 407-830-6868 Please call to find out. NO Mexico PATIENTS...685 Palm Springs Dr., Ste. #1E, Altamonte Springs, FL 32701 (in Palm Springs Medical Center). Www.wbweightlosssurgery.com FLORIDA - Hollywood area/ Dr. Thomas Bass 954-966-8559 $250 consult, $250 each fill, $250 monthly membership fee for 12 months until u are an established patient 1150 N. 35th #575, Hollywood, FL 33021 FLORIDA - Sandy Anderson, RN/ BSN 941-206-2111 Initial Visit $450 (includes pt. visit, consult, fill) Fills after that $150 Office consult $75 Fills w/ x-ray $450 (includes hospital fees) Surgical Obesity Solutions 3161 Harbor Blvd, Suite D, Port Charlotte, FL 33952 sandy@surgicalobesitysolutions.net FLORIDA - Miami/ Dr. Nestor Delacruz-Munoz 305-856-4385 Please call to find out. (Not Confirmed Yet) Surgical Weight Loss Institute - 3659 S. Miami Ave, Ste. #5002, Miami, FL 33133 FLORIDA - Miami/ Dr. Alejandro Hernandez-Cano & Dr. Ponbo 305-446-3636 $100 consults, $300 fills w/ fluoro 55 West 3rd Street, Hialeah, FL 33010 FLORIDA - Miami/ Dr. Brian Dunkin & Dr. Robert Bailey 305-243-2424 $800-$1500 for fills @ hospital 1475 NW 12th Ave. Ste #4023, Miami, FL 33136 Price depends on cc’s of Fluid. Price quoted is thru Insurance, call for info on self pay. FLORIDA - Miami/ Dr. Juan Fleites 305-856-3212 Call for current price. 3661 South Miami Ave., Ste # 205, Miami, FL 33133 FLORIDA - Miami/ Dr. Lourdes Pelaez 305-670-4134 or 305-670-0311 Call for current price. 7400 N. Kendall Dr., Ste # 403, Miami, FL 33156 FLORIDA - Miami/ Dr. Eddie Gomez 305-285-5090 $300.00 no fluoro Advanced Surgical Associates, 3661 S. Miami Ave, Ste. #301, Miami, FL 33133 FLORIDA - Coral Gables/ Dr. Moises Jacobs 305-669-2388 $200 fills (no fluoro) Laparoscopic Center of So. Florida 1150 Campo Sano Ave. Ste # 300, Coral Gables, FL 33146 (in Miami) FLORIDA - Weston/ Dr. Raul Rosenthal & Dr. Samual Szomstein 954-659-5228 or 954-659-5239 $250-$450 consult fee (depends on lab tests, etc) $250-$500 for fills Cleveland Clinic 2950 Cleveland Clinic Blvd, Weston, FL 33331 (near Davie, FL) FLORIDA - Ft. Lauderdale/ Dr. David Diaz, Dr. Michael Perez, Dr. Ravindra Mailapur & Dr. Robert Marema 954-351-1589 or 954-351-7770 $175 office visits, $250 fills (no fluoro) $150 for fluoro (if needed) U.S. Bariatrics 4800 NE 20th Terrace Ste # 303, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33308 Speak to Elba Ext. #109 FLORIDA - Atlantis area/ Dr. Kenneth A. Larson 561-439-1500 $125 fill (no fluoro) $150 Consult every fill includes a consult $275 total Near JFK Hospital 142 JFK Dr., Atlantis, FL 33462 (in Palm Beach County, near Boynton Beach) Will ONLY do fills on INAMED lapbands. FLORIDA - Tallahassee/ Dr. Jeffrey Crooms 850-877-6212 $75 (please call to see what this includes or if there are any other charges) Please call. 1405 Centerville Rd., Ste #4400, Tallahassee, FL 32308 NEAR ATLANTA, GEORGIA FLORIDA - Melbourne 321-951-7074 call for a physician 321-725-4500 main ofc $300 no fluoroscopy Allergan Band ONLY! Kathy.Blair@MIMA.com 200 E. Sheridan Rd., Melbourne, FL 32901

You said they did a CT scan, but did they do a barium swallow? Did you go to your bariatric surgeon rather than another doctor? If not, you definitely need to get into your bariatric surgeon ASAP.

Hi I'm new here I'm having my Bariatric bypass surgery Aug 26th

PB, Remove your band port? Oh my gosh, not for reconstructive surgery! Let us hope you keep your band and your health - I hope I can keep mine as long as I need help with weight control (unless I get an RnY bypass, that will probably be forever.) To be honest, that surgeon doesn't sound as if he knows a lot about the LapBand. I don't know anyone who had their band port completely removed for cosmetic or reconstructive surgery - it might get moved down with a Tummy Tuck, but that's it. If you can, try to consult with a Cosmetic Surgeon who has experience with LapBanded patients. (Ask your LapBand surgeon if he/she is local who they recommend - some bariatric surgeons have a colleague whose handled more of their patients and that's a powerful referral.) I did consults with 4 Cosmetic Surgeons but finally I picked the one who had done more LapBand patients and who worked closely with my Band doctor. He had done Lipo on plenty of Band patients (never poked a port yet) and also many Tummy Tucks/Abdominoplasties on Banded folks. He wasn't fazed at all. I saw his work on other band patients and I was very comfortable. My LapBand and I survived the Abdominoplasty and thanks to him, I didn't even need an unfill before my procedure. It's exciting to hear how your consults are going. You're already shapely contoured and symmetrical - if you do decide to have cosmetic work, you're gonna have a dynamite shape. Hopefully once I put these surgeries behind me, I can restart my belly dancing classes again, and one day maybe I'll have some belly-baring pics to add like yours! Happy Band (and Life) Journeys To All.

Teresa, your idea of writing to them was a great one. Here's the letter I just sent: I was very disheartened to watch Al Roker's piece on bypass surgery last Friday. There was no discussion whatsoever of other types of bariatric surgery--irresponsibly so in light of the fact that more and more people, including teenagers, are taking this very serious step. Someone watching your show could easily conclude that there is only one type of surgical procedure available to people suffering from severe obesity. Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding is profoundly safer than bypass and equally effective in improving the health of people suffering from weight-related problems. Weight loss is moderated and, as with RNY/bypass, requires that the patient make substantial changes in his or her life. Perhaps you avoided discussions of banding because as yet, only one manufacturer distributes the band in the U.S. But at the very least it would have been appropriate and helpful to say that there ARE other surgical options available, and that people doing research should be sure to inquire about them. The goal of any weight-loss surgery is to improve the life and health of the patient, and there is no question that banding can help that happen with exponentially fewer risks to the patient. Dr. Christine Ren is one of the most respected band doctors in the country. Since it's inconceivable that she did not bring this procedure to the attention of Mr. Roker or your producers, the obvious conclusion is that it was excluded for some reason. I am very concerned--as you should be too--that some members of your audience will make an unnecessarily risky decision because of your editorial choice.

Hello, everyone. My name is Nicole and I just found this forum website from a Google search. This is my first post, my introduction. I am 32 years old, I am a mom of three (12, 9, 7) and I am engaged to an amazing man. We live in Greensboro, NC. I had my RNY on July 30, 2007 and just this past week was the first I'd experienced any type of problems. I will get into that more here in a little bit. I had my RNY, as I stated above, in 2007, and I went into the surgery room weighing 257 lbs. My highest recorded weight was 315 lbs, and my lowest was 128 lbs. Right now I am hovering around 160 lbs. Since my RNY I have gone through a 12 year relationship/10 year marriage that was rather abusive, as well as a separation from that marriage, a new (and amazing) relationship, two moves (from PA to VA and then VA to NC), three knee surgeries, an emergency gall bladder removal surgery and just this past week an emergency perforated stomach ulcer surgery. Like I said above, this last week's incident was the first problem since having my surgery (aside from the occasional "dumping", vomiting, dehydration, etc.) and it was VERY scary. I was admitted to the local hospital, with what I thought was a heart attack because of the symptoms I was displaying, only to find that a ruptured ulcer produced a perforated stomach. I spent 7 days in the hospital, having gotten out just yesterday. My "pouch" was repaired, however I am back on the DYS 1 diet of pureed and soft foods, and I am being set up with a bariatric surgeon and his team (one that works with the surgeons who worked on my stomach last week) in the next 2 weeks because there is a good chance that I will have to have a revision done. I am on some medications right now, to continue the healing process, but the surgeons think that there is going to be no option other than the revision. Um, let's see ..... I truly have strayed from the "RNY way of life" with all of the craziness and stress that has gone on in my life, but after this past week I know that I have to get back in line. As I said above, in 2010 I had gotten down to 128 lbs (around a size 4) and while I really enjoyed it I just crept back up after the first knee surgery. It's going to be a while before I can get back into the gym, but that's my last worry right now. I just want to get better. I hope to meet a lot of nice people here, to offer advice and to get advice. Just because I'm 5 years post-op it doesn't mean I know it all, and I never claim to. I am posting two pictures along with this post - the first is my highest and lowest weights (2006 and then 2010) and then myself and my children, back in August, at my current size. I hope that everyone has a blessed Thanksgiving week and weekend. Nicole

I know they are fabulous but this isn’t a thread about whether I should buy one or not. The question is how well do bariatric patients do with eating food from an Air Fryer? What’s your experience? Every non-bariatric person I know loves theirs. But I’ve seen several articles lately discussing how the end product is not good for those that have had WLS as the food isn’t as tender or smooth as it should be. Most articles referred to items with crunchy outsides. So, thoughts?

I am just over 3 months out. I see the foods that I love and am completely satisfied after taking just 1 bite! I never believed this would happen for me. Last night a friend (who was sleeved on Oct 30) and I went to the support group meeting. It is about 1 1/2 hrs away so we went out to dinner afterwards. We ordered the shrimp appetizer. It had 8 medium sized shrimp. We each ate only 4 and were stuffed. As we saw plates going by with mountains of food we both commented on what an incredilble amount of food it was and it was hard to believe we ever ate that much! My problem has always been portion control and the sleeve has absoultely solved that problem for me. This is the best decision I have ever made! Keep a positive attitude and just follow the directions of the bariatric team. I have never thrown up or felt sick. It has been so good for me. I am so happy and wish I would have done it long ago! Good luck to you.

I like the visualizations part. Do you mean how you're going to handle surprise donuts/goodies at work? Going out to eat? That sounds VERY smart! I agree it's great to have the support. It's hard being alone. Do you have a support group that your bariatric center offers? Some places have monthly real life meet ups with other banded folks. My doc is in NY and I'm in Philly so I can't take advantage of this. I think it harmed me the first time around being banded...had I had support groups to attend, I might have known I had a leak sooner than I did and lost all my weight, not just most of it. oh this you have to share, when you hit the milestone!!

Love a good typo. Soap??? Stop now and switch to soup! Some people take noodle soups and strain off the noodles, but I was lazy I used tomato soup, chicken/beef/or veg broths. Also used a lot of Chrystal Light drinks to get away from broths. Best of luck on your journey down Bariatric Lane.

Dr. C, Thanks for posting this. Makes me feel I've chosen the right type of bariatric surgery for me. NancyRN

Hi Lap Band People, I am just trying to get into this site because I believe I will need some support and information on my journey. This seems to be a huge and active discussion group. I am also hoping to find a local support group in Milwaukee. I got my band on Thursday, May 12, 2011, from Dr. Thomas Chua, Wisconsin Bariatric Clinic, on Loomis, in Milwaukee. My insurance excluded coverage so I bit the bullet and paid for it myself. It certainly cut the paperwork and got me on the fast track. Now I'm healing. Still sipping vicodin, but starting to get free of it. I changed my dressings. I got a food processor and little 4 oz cups to freeze stuff in. I have a kitchen scale (for foods). A couple of weeks ago I was 313 lovable pounds. Now I am 297, sore, disoriented, but no less lovable, I hope. I was crabby this morning with a person who works for me, who is also obese. I told her I didn't appreciate her assumption that every new idea would be a bad thing. My goal is 200 pounds, but maybe it should be 175, as I am 6', 61 years old. I am divorced since a couple of years ago. I have 6 children, 3 of which are in their 20's. One is 9. I wanted to stick around awhile to see how they do. I have a good primary physician in Milwaukee. He has watched my weight increase despite stringent efforts to overcome the problem. He watches over my asthma, sleep apnea, pre-diabetes, gout, high blood pressure, heart risks, etc. He mentioned the lap band surgery. I resisted by trying one last-ditch effort with a psychiatrist, who gave me prozac for 6 months. At first it helped. I stopped drinking alcohol too. But eventually the appetite reduction effect subsided, and I quit prozac and psychiatric visits and started drinking again, which certainly doesn't help anything. I don't think of myself as an alcoholic, but there is no question that alcohol lowers my resistance to sensible eating. I eat too much. It's a vicious circle. But I hope I am done with all that. I am doing well with the lap band. I have no desire to start drinking again. I am looking forward to feeling well enough to exercise. So that's me. I introduced myself. I will appreciate any support and try to be supportive in turn.

Someone on another blog recommended syntrax from Bariatric choice website. I personally love premier protein and so did the other person who recommended Syntrax, so maybe you will like it maybe not.. I guess it's all trial and error.

Well, I have found some to purchase on Bariatric pal. Amazon has some too. I have been researching through company websites, and just googling everything about the products that I think I might like. I have to avoid things like caffeine, and I don’t want everything to be super sugary. I spend a lot of time reading reviews and adding prices up on different websites to try to get the best prices. Next step I am going to e-mail the companies that I can not find samples for to ask about purchasing samples from them if possible. Who knows maybe soon there will be sample packs of everything available. They don’t know there’s a market for them if people don’t ask. 😁

It is with Mexico Bariatric Ctr not sure which Doc yet have been working with Christy she is great.

Glad you're doing okay. It is hard to look through all the other stuff in life and focus on ourselves for a few weeks. Think it's super important though. Especially at the beginning. Hope you find some time. Got cleared for moderate exercise and pretty much all foods yesterday with the exception of hard foods (like tough steak) so I'm feeling much better about the whole thing. Had some fish pie yesterday after my surgeon visit. The kind topped with mashed potatoes and cheese. I felt my first real restriction eating that and even though it was a tiny portion (maybe 5oz), I had to leave some on my plate. A first! Thank the lord. Thought I was going to be the first bariatric patient that didn't feel full! 😂 Still smoking free! Loving that 👍 Take care and try to find some "look after yourself" time x

@@SleevyWonder Yes I am going to Toledo Hospital. They just added a new wing, and the Bariatric recovery is there. Everyone is usually very nice. The hospital is the one thing I am not worried about lol

Adding calories is super easy even with a lot of restriction. Go for things with high fats like nuts, and sugars, like raisins. For someone with a condition bordering on being underweight you can probably even go get a GOoey high end organic treat from Whole Foods and get 500 cal just from that. If you had a need for the surgery at one time, then you know how to put weight back on. I would also consider doing everything I can to increase my nutritional intake-less focus on calories and more focus on organic vegetables and fruits. Just intuition based notions I have. It's amazing to me that anyone who is overweight enough to need bariatric surgery can actually get too thin. This is definitely not been an issue for me, and I can't imagine what you must be going through from one extreme to the other. You can do this! Just ask your body what she needs. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Okay, thanks. My insurance company told me that there is a $5000 co pay for All bariatric surgeries that would have to be paid first, then they would cover everything after that 100%. I have a co worker who had the lap band and she only paid around $1300 out of pocket and that included money given to the surgeon, anesthesiologist and hospital stay. So I'm curious to know if the amount paid out of pocket varies depending on what doctor performs the surgery.

Saturday evening, I started to feel pain deep underneath the general area of my port incision. When I bend or turn too far to that side, it is a very sharp and very intense pain that leaves me holding my side and taking some deep breaths. I have had no pain for a couple of weeks now, until this. It is not constant, and today its not as severe as Sat., but still hurts when I move wrong. I called my surgeon's partner Saturday night (my dr is on vacation) and he said it was nothing. Said I probably pulled a stitch or tore the muscle its stitched too and to relax...it happens. Well, today I called my bariatric nurse and she said I should go in and get checked out to be safe. So I called the surgeon's office and they transferred me to his MA (I don't even know what that stands for). I am waiting for a call back. I am thinking about ripped stitches, flipping ports, major things that would require revisional surgery. But the surgeon seemed unconcerned. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Hopefully the MA will call me soon. Thanks.

Sorry for what you're going through. My experience has been the exact opposite. Having read this forum for several months (and 3 or 4 seminars by my bariatric group) I was expecting the experience to be more like yours. Maybe guys have it easier?

i am currently 23yrs old, 5ft1inches tall and 188 pounds, i suffer from severe depression mostly concerning my weight. i am constantly ridiculed over it from from my family and boyfriends, for an example, a couple days ago my boyfriend went out and got me a little boys costume that was incredibly small on me and made me go out in public like that showing most all of my butt and stomach while his friend laughed at me, my family used to make me run laps around the house and put me on all kinds of different diets telling me i would be beautiful if i losed the weight. i get social security and have been going to counseling since i was very young because of it all. in my life ive tried every diet possible and used to run 4 to 5 times a week. i stopped taking my meds because it kept all my weight on, and ive tried diet pills for the last couple years and my back pain is seeming to get worse all the time. its been nearly impossible to lose weight and ive been running out of options. i was wondering if it would even be worth talking to my doctor about getting some sort of bariatric surgery done to see if that would help. this extra weight is more of a burden than i can deal with.. i also have medicare part a and b and medicaid.

Interesting article on the new Allergan lap-band advanced platform (AP) from the Bariatric Times: http://bariatrictimes.com/2007/06/02/the-lap-band-ap%e2%84%a2-system-the-platform-advances/