INTRODUCTIONS-please introduce yourself here before going to another thread

[chattykathy 0]

Hi, My name is Kathy and I was banded on July 15th in Tucson, AZ. I am an ER Nurse.

I have lost 25 pounds so far and am excited for my next fill. Hello everyone.:biggrin:

[SpecialK 22]

Love your userid -- that was a nickname of mine when I was young and loved the Chatty Cathy doll! Welcome and be sure to check out your Arizona section unser USA Local groups and I bet you'll find lots of folks right there in your backyard that are bandsters!

[Shrtnsweet8 0]

Hello all. I am 50 years old :thumbup: and was banded Wednesday, October 15 at Riverside by Dr. Myers. I have not attended any support meetings yet because my approval happened within weeks of surgery. I am interested in meeting people from the Columbus, Ohio area that have similar struggles and interests. I am also interested in corresponding with others outside the Ohio area. Would love some experienced mentors. :biggrin:

I have been married for 30 years, work full time, travel extensively and have two wonderful grown daughters, all of whom are very supportive. Thankfully neither of my girls have weight issues at this time. My goal is to lose 120 pounds.

[sailorChristy 1]

Hello! I am 38 and an e-commerce Product Design Manager and sailor in Columbus, Ohio. When I was younger and thought I knew everything, I thought that people used ‘thyroid problems’ as a convenient excuse for their size. Well, then I was diagnosed with the Graves Disease (overactive thyroid) 5.5 years ago, and I had a total thyroidectomy 2 years ago. I have gained 50 pounds since I was diagnosed, and having a screwed-up thyroid (aka ‘metabolism’) and now having *no* thyroid has definitely proven to be a serious strike against me in the weight management department.

I have a family history of all the horrible obesity-related diseases and am frightened to death. I don’t want all of that to be the only future I have ahead of me… and to be honest, I’d really love to have a tight little body again (like I did when I did, yep - you guessed it, the Atkins Diet) and the ability to run 5ks every weekend. And okay, I’d really love to snag me a husband, too, before these ovaries of mine wear out completely.

I am just starting the program at Fresh Start Bariatrics @ Riverside Methodist Hospital. I absolutely adore Dr. Stephan Myers and his team. I have plenty of hurdles to clear before my surgery is scheduled (sleep 'hypopnea,' counseling for anxiety/depression/head-hunger, and nailing this pre-op diet), but I am viewing this as my last chance to save my life.

I can't wait to really start living again!

[pddjmpr 0]

Hello Everyone. My name is Donna, I am in my 56th year. I live in Southeastern Ohio, Jackson County actually. I have not been heavy all my life. It went in spurts with me. But in early 2000, my body just went hay-wire. I developed hypothyroidism, cataracts, HB pressure, lite shingles, and I have a total rt knee replacement, and a couple rt ankle surgeries, and a messed up right side from a work accident in 1996. Have done an enormous amount of pt, but no weight loss success. So in 2007, July 3 to be precise, I went to Dr. Curry in Cincy and had lap band performed. It reversed my HP pressure, turned my insulin resistance around, had my cataracts removed myself, shingles were lite, lasted only a few days, but the knee, hip, ankle gives me alot of problems when it comes to exercise. Throughs everything out and then to the doctor for a series of shots just to be able to walk.

Would love to be able to do toning beds like Dr. C has, but it takes me 3 hrs to just travel one way there. I started at 313 lbs and am down 256 last time weighed in June 2008. Would be interested in hearing from others in area or out. Would be nice to start a support group for Vinton, Jackson, Gallia, etc or is there one I am unaware of? Happy Losing to all!

[nursejo 0]

Hi,

I'm 44yo. I am a 1.5 yrs survivor of breast cancer. I have never been this big in all my life. The last 5 yrs I have ranged from 225-253# I have sleep apnea,arthritis,and a fatty liver. I am going to a information session for lap band 1/27/09. I have Medical Mutual insurance. Hoping to gain some more knowledge on this site. I live in south eastern Ohio. Jo

[SpecialK 22]

Hi,

I'm 44yo. I am a 1.5 yrs survivor of breast cancer. I have never been this big in all my life. The last 5 yrs I have ranged from 225-253# I have sleep apnea,arthritis,and a fatty liver. I am going to a information session for lap band 1/27/09. I have Medical Mutual insurance. Hoping to gain some more knowledge on this site. I live in south eastern Ohio. Jo

Welcome Jo! Don't worry -- all of us were at our breaking point and ashamed of our weight when we got to the point of knowing we needed to do something other than rejoin WW for the 50th time (for me...) and we will be here to support you. Are you going to info sessions about WLS down in southeast Ohio or in Columbus? Just PM me if you have any questions you want to have answered offline.

[nursejo 0]

I will be going to Holzer in Gallipolis. My surgeon wil be Dr. Grandia.I'm getting really excited. Is there like a list of things I should get before surgery? Thanks for the welcome.:tongue2:

[BG's Dad 0]

Hey everyone. I live in the Dayton area and am new to this site and support groups in general. I played football and basketball most of my life and could eat whatever I wanted and still stay around 200-225 mark. I am 5' 8" but that is a weight I liked and felt good at. I started working a desk job in 1999 and the weight began to pile on, I changed my excercise habits but not my eating habits and soon I could not excercise my way back in to shape. I could where gym shorts and baggy shirts when I worked so I never realized how out of shape I had gotten until 2005 when I began to work in an office.

I had to go to JC Penney big and tall department to buy my clothes and was shocked at how large I had let myself become. I weighed in at 365 pounds and felt like the world had ended. My wife and I had a daughter in Dec 2006 and I told her I was not going to let my size affect our daughter. We bought bikes and went riding or hiking every weekend but the weight still did not come off.

In November of 2008 I began the journey to become a banded person. I went through Dr Teel at Miami Valley Hospital and was banded on January 20th (almost a week ago) and have lost about 20 punds since surgery.

I look forward to sharing my concerncs fears and thoughts with you as I go through this journey.

Edited January 26, 2009 by BG's Dad
wrong info:)

[SpecialK 22]

I will be going to Holzer in Gallipolis. My surgeon wil be Dr. Grandia.I'm getting really excited. Is there like a list of things I should get before surgery? Thanks for the welcome.

I have done alot of genealogy work on my family and many of those ancestors trace back to the early days in Gallipolis and I've want to go down to that area on a history expedition but have just never made it. Anyway.

Things I took to the hospital -- a handheld game or book to read, magazine, etc. I ended up waiting 3 extra hours in pre-op due to a really difficult case of some kind that backlogged the surgery schedule so it was nice having my brother to talk to for all that time but once I got back to my hospital room, he took off and I was on my own the rest of the evening so the game/book was handy. Someone also had told me to consider taking a bottle of Chloraseptic mouth spray to use on my throat after surgery because you have a sore or dry throat from the tube being down but I really could have done okay without that. Someone else told me to buy some liquid Tylenol in advance in case I was having any pain or headaches and didn't want to try the pill form of Tylenol, etc. during the liquids stage. I actually again, didn't need this. I just used the hospital's nightgown, robe, slipper socks and went home in the same clothes I came in, didn't bring a nightgown, robe, slippers of my own. I did bring toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash, deodorant as I remember it.

Is that what you were asking?

[sweetbean70 2]

Howdy! My name is Kristi and I live in Newark (about 45 minutes east of Columbus). I live w/ my hubby of 12 years, 4 pekingese pups, and 3 cats. My husband and I are both special education teachers. We do not have any children. I have been overweight for as long as I can remember. I was merely overweight during high school b/c I played sports year round. Once I went to college and became less active, the weight really started packing on. When I got married ('96), I weighed 255. Now, 12+ years later, I have ballooned to 325.

I have also posted here on the PCOS Bandsters thread. I have been battling w/ PCOS (undiagnosed) since my early teenage years. I finally asked my ob/gyn in 1997 about PCOS after reading an article in Good Housekeeping about it. The dr. told me to use Nair and go on a diet. In 2001, I went to another ob/gyn and asked her about PCOS. She prescribed me a cream and told me that if I lost weight, the "hair problem" wouldn't be so bad. Well, it is now 2009 and I am no longer going to just accept what the dr. says b/c s/he has a medical degree! I am going to a new dr. on April 14 and this time I am loaded w/ info about PCOS. I know which blood tests I need and which meds might need to be prescribed. I WILL NOT LEAVE THAT OFFICE UNTIL I HAVE SOME ANSWERS!!!

I have decided on getting a lap band to help me w/ my weight loss. I went to a seminar on April 8 at Mt Carmel West in Columbus. I have filled out my paperwork and will be mailing it back tomorrow. I am also going to attend a seminar at OSU on April 21. I want to get at least 2 perspectives before I commit to a facility/surgeon. I am also going to have to pay for this out of my own pocket. Therefore, I want to compare prices and what each surgery package includes.

I am so excited about having this procedure! I am looking forward to chatting w/ E1 from Ohio who has had a bariatric surgery or is on their way to having one.

Edited April 10, 2009 by sweetbean70

[emjay 8]

Hi all - I'm from a small town about 40-50 miles north of Dayton and was banded just this month! After almost 2 weeks, I'm feeling much better! I was the chronic yo-yo dieter since college and have no idea what my "ideal" weight is...since I never stayed at any particular weight for any length of time. My sister just had it on March 31st where she lives and so we are kind of going thru this together. I'm pretty new to the forum and I'm looking for this to be a great support feature on my journey. I'm glad to see so many Buckeyes on the forum!

[Angie65 7]

Hi, I live around the area Dayton I am 43 and weigh a 364lbs. I have been overweigh most of my adult life. I have a husband of 24 years, a son 19 and daughter 14. I am going to be self pay. My surgery date is June 1st. I can not wait!!! :drool:

[KarenInOhio 3]

hi everyone. i'm from NE ohio (cleveland area). i work in the software industry, testing websites. i was banded on 3/25/09 and have been extremely happy with my results so far.

i look forward to meeting others who have gone through this. i will try to make it to the meetings you have at polaris mall in columbus !

cheers !

karen

[lisaasil9 3]

Hi All!

I am using Dr Choban and hope to be banded soon. I am currently awaiting a Peer to Peer review since I was denied:-( today due to low BMI in 07. Wish me luck!!

~Lisa~