Hi from Ireland!

[ailbhe 1]

God girls, the treatment ye are getting is apalling. I can't get over it. Hope it all gets sorted for you all and you get fills galore

Speaking of fills, Elsie, you all set for Thursday! I can't wait!

[LindseyGarde07 0]

Hi all

Quick question, where in ireland do u get the fills done? im goin 2 brussels to get mine doe n few weeks and want to know where to get the fills and how much it will cost:smile2:

[ailbhe 1]

Hi Lesley. Dr Chris has a surgery in Dublin once a month where he does fills and consultations. Fills cost €120.

If you have any questions about Brussels feel free to ask. There are a few of us here who have been banded there so we'll do our best to answer you.

[LindseyGarde07 0]

Hi Ailbhe.

Thanks for the info, am getting my band done on the 21st April in brussels with another dotor calledDr. Marc Vertruyen, does it matter if i dont get that other doctor to do it? dont want to have to travel to brussels for a fill.. nightmare,

How much did you pay for the whole lot? Just makin sure i didnt pay over the to for it, i paid €5780

[LindseyGarde07 0]

tell me all that you know...lol

Im 5 "10" and 22.5 stone.. very nervous, but excited!

[ailbhe 1]

Hi Lindsey. I'm not sure about the other doctor. It is just Dr DeBruyne that does fills in Dublin as far as I know but he deals with other peoples patients. Does your fee include after care or fills? If not then you could still go to Dr Chris for fills.

I paid €3400 but that was literally just the operation. No fills or aftercare included.

What hotel are you staying in? I stayed in the campanile which was just a few minutes from the hospital. Have a few tips for there if that's where you're staying. Hospital is fine, really clean and comfortable. Facilities are much better than Irish hospitals and all the nurses speak English. Is it the AZ Jans Portael (I prob spelled that totally wrong!) you are going to?

BTW I am 5ft 7 and was almost 19 stone before op. 17 and a half stone now.

[LindseyGarde07 0]

HOTEL LAMBEAU thats my hotel in brussels city

CLINIC EUROPE ST MICHEL thats the clinic

THE COST OF SURGERY INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING:

1) CONSULTATION FEES

2) SURGEON FEES

3) ANAESTHETIST FEES

4) CARDIOLOGIE TEST

5) BLOOD TEST

6) X RAYS

7) DIETETICIEN

8) CLINIC FEES WHERE YOU STAY 24 HRS

thats whats included for €5870

ill have 2 pay for my own adjustments, its booked and paid for.. i searched into it a good bit and thought that was the best deal.

i will have 2 contact him after i get the surgery to book a appointment to get any adjustments, im delighted i wont have to go abroad for it.. so happy lol :tongue_smilie:

how do u find eating and all that?? thats something i dont know much about. but the most important is... do u feel hungry

[ailbhe 1]

I do get hungry but amn't able to eat much in one sitting. Can't eat chicken, it gets stuck. If I eat too quickly it gets stuck. I'm eating normal food but sticking to soft stuff. Nothing too tough. I'm finding I can eat more these days but I'm due my first fill next week so I'm hoping that will up my restriction again.

[ellen 0]

Hi Everyone

Hope ye get sorted soon on the fill-front. Am desperately trying to stay away from the Lindt bunnies (and chickens and lambs - yum yum)etc myself at the moment.

Coco this isolagen sounds great (my God 7 years, there are going to be queues down the street for it) - let me know how you get on if you do decide to go for it.

Laura, in answer to your question. Once I agreed to the date with Dr D i paid 500 Euro to the hospitals account and a further 350 the morning of the op. The balance I paid in cash directly to Dr D. By the way, while youre making up your mind, you might like to look at another website - (just google Dr Cerna Laderma Clinic in Prague. She seems to have a very good reputation too (check out www.lookyourbestUK.com - the thread on "surgery abroad") - I havent seen a bad word about her. I originally planned to go to her but I think she requires you to stay a couple of days longer locally which didnt suit me - mind you in the end I felt awful and had to prolong my stay in Brussels by a couple of days anyway. The other reason I didnt go to her was because I think she does Lipo by Gen anaesthetic and I wanted sedation only .... but because of the amount to be taken out dr D had to us a gen anaesthetic anyway. Dr Cerna provides really nice appartments next to the clinic at a cheap rate and her prices are really good too.

Elsie and Ailbhe, I think I'll try and get a fill from Dr C on the 3rd. Maybe see you there if I get an appointment.

All the best

Ellen

[LindseyGarde07 0]

Hi all,

Hope all is well, joined here yesterday, and ya totally made me feel welcome.

i like hearing all your experiences with the band etc, keep them coming, i dont mind eating little food, so long as i can eat, lol, went to Lipotrim for 5 weeks before and lost 2.5 stone,. but it was really disgusting,, seriously, the shakes made me gagg, im nearly gagging now at the thought of it, not nice! was great loosing the weight but ya NEVER eat and that was a huge problem, ya starved through the whole thing, ya drink loads of Water, which made ya pee a lot and dont get me started oon the bad breath, smelled like dog poo!! no exaggeration...

the second i came back on food, i put all the weight back on, and more! i was then just over 16 stone and now am 22.5! sickening i know!

But thats life! thats my story! tried weight watchers, unislim etc etc and couldnt stop the amount of food that i was eating. so am hoping ill learn to eat differently and show a aprichiation for food again,..

everyone i told is behind me on this, including my boyfriend, who likes me for me, but you know yourself, id be heppier a size 14, am now a 24!

[ailbhe 1]

Know how you feel Lindsey! You'll get there.

Just be warned that the first 2 weeks after surgery are liquids only and 2 weeks after that it's mushies (anything the consistency of baby food). Then you can eat normal food again.

The weight fell off me the first 2 weeks but I haven't lost anything since (nor have I gained which I am happy about as it doesn't feel like I'm limiting myself really).

I eat when I want, try to make fairly responsible choices, eat as much as I need to to feel full etc. But if I am somewhere where I can't eat sensibly I can eat there too and the difference is I don't feel like I've "blown" my diet because I'm not on one. That is the main difference for me. Lets say before the band I was on a diet and with a friend and went to McDs. I would think "oh to hell with it, I'll treat myself" and eat all around me! Then the next day I would think "in for a penny, in for a pound. I've blown the diet this week with the McDs so I'll just enjoy myself and worry about it next week. And so I fail on the diet and never resume it again! :scared2:

With the band I am in the same position (in McDs) but this time I know I can eat until I'm full but it won't take much. I order a hamburger and fries and a Water (as I can't drink fizzy drinks). So I eat the meat from the burger. By the time I finish that(if I manage to) and a few fries I am full and everyone else is also finished as it takes so long for me to eat. Therefore I don't have to watch them eat! So off I go feeling satisfied, knowing it probably wasn't the best thing for me but hey, I ate so little of it that it doesn't matter.

I don't know if that makes any sense or if I am just rambling but I have a whole different mentality to food since I got the band. I am not dieting, I am not suffering, I am not longing for things and seeing some food as bad iykwim? I am not punishing myself I suppose. I am just eating. I love food and I love eating and I can still do that (within reason) but I feel satisfied when I am finished which is the big thing for me because I HATE being hungry :w00t:

[LindseyGarde07 0]

wow thats interesting, i think ill try and do my best and eat just healthy for the first bit and see how i get on from there, hopefully the weight will fall off me, i do know that the weight loss will be alot better in the first bit and once ive lost weight ill go walking as much as i can coz the pressure will be off my legs and ankles and will be less out of breath, plus the fact that the summer is coming and the evenings will be brighter, and ill have to go for a walk coz my job is a sit down on your ass kinda job, i dont move that much and i do know its deadly for gaining weight, plus am movin house close to my job so i can walk some days to and from,.. looking forward to getting the whole thing done and seeing the effects, i have herbalife shakes too and i can use them for the liquid part and mushy part of my diet, they fill of minerals and Vitamins.< /p>

The only thing is, i hope that it works, after spending so much money on it, the last thing i want to do is fail!! hopefully that wont happen.. in keeping my fingers crossed on that one!

im headin over to brussels on the 21st and havin the operation on the 23rd, and coming home on the 26th, so its a little holiday as well and then back to work on the 30th... really looking forward to it now and wished i got it done sooner. wish i got the finance sooner.. but what they hey,.

do you think it was a good investment?

[ailbhe 1]

Well, I'm only banded a month so I can't really say for certain whether it was worth it or not! But so far I feel it was. I'm sure some of the longer term bandsters will let you know. I think I asked a similar question and it was a resounding YES.

[LindseyGarde07 0]

thats something at least, were u sore after it? i hope they not too rough inside there when they doing it,., would love if they taped it so i could see my insides, lol... i wonder do they do that?

would be a very interesting thing to show my friends and family.

i have looked it up on youtube a few times and looks horrible.. my boyfriend is very understanding about it, he is more nervous than me, the poor thing.. its a free holiday for him, haha!!

who did you go with to get the operation done?

[ailbhe 1]

I won't lie. It was pretty sore. Not unbearable but sore. The first 2 days were the worst and after that I improved every day. Everyone is different though. Some people have very little pain. I needed 2 weeks off work!

I never watched it on YouTube.. Was afraid it would put me off :scared2: Maybe I will now that it's over and done with. My fella came over with me. It was great as he could carry the bags and help me put my shoes on the first day or two! I felt sorry for him the first few days as I pretty much slept solidly for day one and two. He must have been so bored.

He was a bit nervous too and he felt awful as the morning of the surgery he had literally just popped out to get a coffee when they came and took me to surgery. He spent 2 anxious hours worrying himself sick that something would happen and he never said goodbye. Poor guy.