Dontondan

Congratulations, enjoy your time down there in TJ! It is so good to hear people enjoying having surgery! Who would have guessed?

Robin, Most of us in this forum have had our Bands through OCC with Dr. Ortiz and Dr. Martinez. They are wonderful and it is a great clinic and you will get the best of care there. If you read through the topics you will get tons of information, good and a few bad, but honest comments from real people. My experience was totally wonderful there and I would recomend them highly. As far as the fills if you live in the Pacific Northwest you have a lot of options....You can fly back to TJ pretty easy and it is not too expensive, there are several Dr's in the area who will see people done in TJ for fills but they are pretty pricey, or there is Northwest Fill Management, who is very convenient, the prices are low, and they have tons of experience. There is also a support group that meets in Port Orchard once a month and that is a nice group. I am sure there are a lot of other support groups in the area, but I like the one in Port Orchard and I also use the forum here. OCC is pretty accomodating with getting your surgery scheduled, so I think that it is mainly when you want it done. You will have a pre-op diet to follow to help shrink your liver so that it is easier for them to perform the surgery but with your consultation by phone they will let you know what you have to do for that, depends on your starting weight and how much you have to lose and your BMI. Good Luck with your decision making and you have made the first step already......you are here! Donna

No they don't use flouro in Port Orchard. They just have a portable set-up there, but they do a great job. They do the fills at a catering hall, that belongs to a very nice lady that was banded and has the support group there after the fill appointments.

Paula > > > Hugs to you, hang in there and keep an eye on the prize!

You go Girl! Keep on working on it and you will see the results! Congratulations

$250 for jeans???? I buy most of mine at Garage Sales and usually pay a quarter or a dollar if they are really special! Maybe I will buy a pair of full price jeans when I get to my goal.

KittyCat, Hope you are feeling better soon, food withdrawal is a tough one, but when the going gets tough, the tough go shopping!!!! Save some money for Revolution Avenue though! Hang in there and don't give up. I went through the withdrawal and it was horrible, I was dizzy, tired, weak but it lasted a short time and then I had all sorts of energy once my body was rid of all the toxins and got used to less sugar and carbs.

I did laundry today and pulled out my new jeans and thought "oh my God!" are these really mine???? I had to do a double take as they were so small compared to my old jeans, I thought they were one of the kids! No they are mine!!!!

First I would tell you to try and get a non-stop flight if you can. I didn't have any problem on the plane with hunger, you can get water or juice on the plane, no need to stock up, you will be newly banded so shouldn't have any hunger, just keep hydrated on the flight and say "no thank you" to the pretzels or peanuts. If you are worried about being hungry just take a packet of boullion and ask for hot water. So simple. Save one of your pain meds for prior to boarding so that you won't have the discomfort and use Phazyme or Gas X in case of gas problems. Sit on an aisle seat and get up and walk if you need to then you won't have to crawl over people to get up. San Diego to Seattle is usually just a 2 hour flight....not long at all. Take a nap, read a good book, you will do fine.

Party like it's your birthday!!!!! :lb21: :lb21: :lb21: :lb21:

Kitty Kat, You are in FOOD WITHDRAWAL!!! Try different types of shakes until you find one you like. In my opinion the Optifast were the worst ones, it can only get better! I even tried blending a banana in them and it didn't help! Just read the labels, cause some are loaded with sugar! I get nasty when I am hungry too, just keep trying! Are you using the metamucil capsules??? That helped me feel like I had something in my stomach and saved my family from a massacre!

It sounds as though you need some unfill. I wouldn't wait. You will get dehydrated. You will lose weight, but at the risk of your health it is not worth it. if you cannot keep down water you need to get some taken out whether it is hot or not!

I think that would creep me out! EWWWWW!

I am sure you would know if there was a problem. What a scare!

Hang in there! Tomorrow is your first Band-day! Have a Happy Band-day!

Could be you need another fill. Just keep up what you are doing and maybe add some more exercise. Be patient, it will happen, I have had 2 times where I had gained or stayed the same for over a month, but it eventually came off. I know how frustrating it can be to see everyone losing well, but everyone is different, how are the inches doing, are your clothes getting loose yet? I lost inches before it showed on the scale. Donna

You have plenty of time! Just do the pre-op that Dr. M gave you and I started weeks early on it and lost more than I needed to and I was on a cruise and vacation for 2 weeks. Increase your exercise and you will do fine. A week before surgery I called Dr. M and she told me that I had lost more than enough and she let me eat Subway for lunch, what a treat! We are here for you during the rough spots. Donna

Take a deep breath.............exhale slowly............repeat! It is normal to be nervous at this point. Relaxation exercises help a bit and someone to talk to, don't forget the chat tonight.....hope to see you there. Donna

We are always a little tighter in the mornings, so start with some tea or coffee to loosen the band a bit, then I eat oatmeal, grits or yougurt. By evening I am not so tight so I can eat actual food! Bread is always a no=no and always gets stuck. Had a baked potato today and tried to eat the skin and that gave me problems (lunchtime). You will get to know your own band and what you can do and not do. I can only eat chicken breast on a "good" day that I don't have a lot of restriction. Otherwise it is too dry, no matter how small the bite or how much I chew it will come back up.

G2 is the new drink from Gatorade, It is lo cal.

Awwww, you are a Pom Mom too! Made me smile today.

I enjoyed popsicles

They are excellent, got me the first time I think, couldn't tell, couldn't feel a thing. They do it a little bit different from OCC. They have you lay down and they had me raise one leg and lift my head at the same time and up pops the port! They told me to do this at home and it will make it easier as the port will come right up. Kitty is so experienced and very gentle and kind, I have a HUGE fear of needles, get panic attacks, hyperventilate and stuff like that. I didn't ever see the needle or feel a thing the entire time. I almost passed out at OCC and spent 20 minutes on the table to get myself together the first time, but the second time I was fine and up and walking right away, sipping on water and doing fine, went to the support meeting right after in Port Orchard. They come there every other month to service people in this area. It was good, all good! I was one that said I would never have a blind fill, but I have no regrets at all and feel very confident with them. Donna

Should be a commercial, LOL!

Hannah, it sounds great! That would be a lot of fun.