MamaMichelle

Hey Diana, I just noticed this post, sorry I didn't reply sooner. Thanks for the compliments on my picture, like many of the women here I am often told that I "have such a pretty face" or that I am "too pretty to be so heavy" it doesn't help that my husband is 6'4 and rail thin and my 5 year old comes up to my shoulder and has the same thin body type as his daddy! So the chubby girl sticks out- see what I mean: I'm not sure where all the people for the 29th are, I know it's a full house because all the private rooms were taken. But I actually just emailed Rene asking if there was space open on the 28th if I could do my tests and surgery on the same day (kind of like "Shampoo" posted about her experience) and she said it looks like it won't be a problem! I am so ready to get this journey going and if I can squeeze in an extra recovery day all the better! So I look forward to meeting you and your daughter and "Kissyfur" as well! See you tomorrow!

1) If you make a decision to get the LapBand or in fact ANY surgery whether in the US or outside the US you should do plenty of research. Obviously many of the posters here have been banded (or will soon be banded) by Dr. Ortiz so you can find the answers to some of these questions within this forum but for those of you looking at other doctors or those who prefer to get your answers from the Dr. directly you will find a good list of questions below. 2) Research the doctor. What kind of follow up care is provided? (ie: fills, unfills, endoscopies, fluroscopies, port revisions, removal, etc). Is there an additional cost for these? What is it? Ask to speak to about 5 or 6 of his patients before you make a decision. Ask those people if they have any complaints or issues with their care before, during and after the procedure. How many of the procedures has he done? What types of complications can occur from this procedure and how frequently do they happen? (ie: perforations, etc) What types of complications has he personally ran into doing this procedure? What is his policy when a complication occurs during a procedure? (ie: does he discuss options with family or immediately convert to bypass or other WLS). Is he Inamed approved for the procedure? If not then who qualified him to perform the procedure and can you have literature to verify this? 3) Research the procedure. How is the procedure performed? What will change on the inside? How will my eating habits change? What will I need to have prepared when I get home in way of food items? What are the short term issues? What are the long term issues? How will I be able to take my pills? 4) Follow up care. What is the schedule for fills? When can I get my first fill? How is the fill procedure performed? (ie: with or without fluroscopy) What is the cost for fills? (under fluro and not) How often will I need to be seen? Will I have access to a Nutritionist? How do you handle unfills? Is there a direct line in case of Emergencies? Does your doctor have email address? What Vitamins should I be taking? Will I need to crush my pills? If so then for how long? Are there any pills that cannot be crushed? If so then how will I be able to take them? 5) In the end you are the ONE person that knows your OWN body. The doctor doesn't, the nurse doesn't, your best friend's neighbor's daughter's friend's dog doesn't. Get the picture? You know when your body is telling you that something isn't right. For instant, you are nauseous, light headed, and feeling tired. Could be flu, could be low blood sugar, could be dehydration. The fact is you are being made aware that your body is not happy. So maybe drink some water, eat some protein and rest. If that doesn't work then call your doctor. Not next week not tomorrow but right then. It might be nothing but better safe than sorry. 6) If you are working the band (i.e. drinking before /after small bites forks/spoons down after bite/ protein first - all those things) as hard as you can, and you are still not losing weight, then you might need to be evaluated for metabolic issues. Do not accept the band as just another failed weight loss gimic. Push for answers. 7) Do not leave the hospital before you know exactly what your post op diet should consist of. Including when and how to advance the diet. (ie: clear liquid, liquid, mushies, regular diet). Also, have a clear picture of what each phase looks like. (ie: clear liquid = broths; liquids = protein drinks; mushies = mashed potatoes; regular diet = protein then veggies then carbs). And unless YOUR doctor told you it's ok to change his or her instructions, then NO.. its NOT ok! 8) ON the issue of Pregnancy and being banded here are some questions you might want to address. How soon after being banded can I get pregnant? Once pregnant, will I have to get a partial unfill or be completely unfilled? Should I expect any issues/complications with a pregnancy after being banded? If there are any what could they be and how will they be addressed? After being banded, are most babies delivered via c-section or can they be delivered naturally? If my baby needs to be delivered via c-section could that damage the port and tubing? Are there additional vitamins I should take while pregnant? If you can't keep water down and you have been suffering for days then CALL YOUR DOCTOR!! If you are having days of reflux and a burning sensation in your belly then CALL YOUR DOCTOR!! If you have a redness, swelling, tender, and hot area around your port then CALL YOUR DOCTOR!! If there is just something that doesn't 'FEEL' right then CALL YOUR DOCTOR!! Please know that I am not suggesting that any of us aren't smart enough to know when something is wrong but sometimes we know more what to do for others than we do for ourselves. If someone has more to offer then please add to this list as needed. This list was created by Robin McCoy but I found it some helpful I just had to post it here!

There are plenty of great protein drinks that you can use to supplement your diet... I just heard about a Product made by Designer Whey- called Protein 2-Go they are sold in individual packs that you can add to a bottle of water (like the crystal light packs) I think it is pretty good. Here is a link for a coupon that you can use at GNC for a free sample of it or $2 off of a box, but the coupons expire on 2/29/08 so use it soon! http://www.designerwhey.com/samples/assets...n2GO-Coupon.pdf

I came across a blog topic on "Restaurant Cards" that you can give to your server that would allow you to order off of the children's menu, with out any hassles. This is what I mean: So I guess my question is when you do eat out after you are back to solids, do you order a regular entree and just leave 2/3rds on your plate (or take it home in a doggy bag) or do you try to order off of the children's menu? Have you ever had any issues ordering off of the kids menu, and if so do you think you would use a card like this or that it would help?

Clynn to the rescue again! Thanks for posting your picture so the rest of us know what Dr. Ortiz' skilled hands can do! That other poor girl in the 3 pics above looks like she has a percentage sign (%) on her belly!

Thanks for sharing the first half of your surgery experience, I am also from Las Vegas (Henderson actually) and am scheduled for the 29th. Maybe we can get together for a fill trip back to TJ!

Still no one for the 29th? I know someone out there must be scheduled, maybe they just haven't found the boards yet! I may have to crash the party for all you girls with surgery on the 28th, since I will be there that afternoon for blood-work!

NO NEITHER PERSON ABOVE WAS DONE BY DR ORTIZ, I just pulled their pics off of google when looking for scar pictures to calm my own fears. From just the chatter I have heard on the boards most say their port scar from Dr Ortiz was less than an inch long. Maybe we can get some brave bandsters who were done by Dr. Ortiz to post their scar pics!!

This was another pictures of post-op scars I found, this girl's surgery surgery was 2 years ago and NOT by Dr. Ortiz which I think explains why the port scar is so large! SCAR @ 3 MONTHS POST OP SCAR @ 6 MONTHS POST OP SCAR @ 12 MONTHS POST OP

I was really concerned about the scarring so I also searched for pictures post op... This is from another Doctors website, but you can see the longer scar on the right which is where her port is and as you can see it is invisible!

It is placed under the skin/muscle and for most people is is not visible though some can feel a bump from where it is if they press on it!

I have yet to be banded (9 more days!) but I also want to reassure those who have booked their surgeries and are feeling concerned about this post, that 99% of the trip reports I have seen posted have been nothing but praise towards OCC, and it's human nature that when things go flawlessly people don't really feel the need to post that praise, it is only when they are dissatisfied that you hear an opinion. Here's an example of what I mean, many of us go to the dry cleaners every week- pick up our clothes with little more than a quick "thank you" but the one time the dry cleaners shrink your favorite skirt or burn a hole in your husbands work shirt you will spend 20 min complaining to them about how badly they messed up, and most likely tell all your friends about the 1 bad experience while neglecting to mention that for the past year you have never had an issue with that cleaning service. I think that Maggie's experience, while unfortunate, is totally valid and I applaud her for sharing it. I believe I read in another post that Lori has forwarded the story to the powers that be which is exactly what needed to be done so hopefully those issues and the circumstances around them will be evaluated and corrected if needed so no one else will have cause to post a similarly negative story in the future! Don't worry, Be Happy!

Somewhat along the same line when discussing shakes... I recently got my shipment of Optifast (Chocolate Flavor) and didn't like the taste as much as the Slim-Fast (Chocolate Flavor) so I did some searching on another board and found a few great tips to enhance the flavor of the Optifast powdered shakes. 1. Add a spoonful of instant coffee into the blender to make a great Mocha-Chocolate flavor similar to what you would pay $6 for at Starbucks. 2. You can buy sugar-free zero calorie coffee flavoring (like the liquid shots of peppermint or whatever) which can give you a different version of your shake eah day. 3. Another good add in to the Vanilla Shakes is to add some of your favorite powdered crystal lite; this way you can have a Vanilla-Strawberry-Kiwi Shake or a Vanilla-Raspberry shake. I'm sure with the ready-made slimfast shakes and the individually packaged servings of crystal lite (the ones made for the water bottles) you could find a easily portable flavor combo that "won't make you vomit". Good Luck!

I am arriving on the 28th for blood work and getting banded on the 29th, I believe I got the last spot on that date and all the private rooms were full so it should be a full house on the 29th though I am yet to find anyone else posting here with that date. I don't drink or smoke so no issues there and I have been doing the slim fast since the 17th and have lost 2lbs so far. I wanted to do optifast but the shipping was going to take too long so I started the slimfast until the optifast shakes arrive.

When I booked my surgery for Feb 29th (only 12 days to go!) I didn't think I was going to be able to arrive until late in the evening before my surgery and Lori said that sometimes they can arrange to do your blood work and surgery on the same day. So you could fly in the evening before and as long as you stop eating by midnight the evening before you will be fine for blood work and surgery the next day!

I have yet to be banded (Only 12 days to go) but whenever I need extra protein I always use egg whites! You can drink them raw without issues (think egg nog) they are super high in protein and super low in calories, if you are still on the liquid diet you can just add 1/2 cup to the shakes you are already drinking for 18 grams of protein and only 60 calories and the best part is there is no taste so whatever you add it to (protein shake, soup, or juice) tastes the same! P.S. You can always crack the eggs yourself but I much prefer using the pre-packaged 100% egg whites that come in the pint sized cartons, it's the easiest and quickest way!

Clynn is correct- I only looked back at posts from the past 3 months and didn't see anything and when I searched I put in s.c.u.b.a. and nothing came up... Rookie mistakes! Here is a link to the post from last year: http://www.lapbandforum.com/index.php?showtopic=4626 Hope this helps someone else that loves to dive!

I just grabbed the last spot for Feb 29th which is the leap year day, so I guess my yearly surgery anniversary will only come around every 4 years! LOL I am arriving on the 28th and would love to chat with anyone else having surgery on the same date!

Hi All, I am new to the boards- hoping to get my surgery at OCC scheduled for late Feb early March (thanks Lori) and I wanted to know if anyone knows if SCUBA diving is ok with the band. Obviously I'm not looking to go out a month after it is put in; but has any one heard of any problems with the band given the difference in pressure underwater? Maybe it's a non-issue but it is something I enjoy so I would love some insight! Thanks and I look forward to participating on these boards more!