Smiley

There is a substance that is thicker than the saline that can be put in the band. This has helped some people achieve the restriction they need. I do not know the name of it, but you might ask your fill doctor about it. Another thing to double check is that you are eating solid forms of protein and that you are eating them first, before you eat your fruits and vegetables so a to help your band work for you.

Thank You! As for this comment, "My local AGB clinics/surgeons won't even look at Mexican banded patient." I am thinking that part of it may have to do with malpractice insurance. Unfortunately medicine today is too often governed by lawsuits or the possiblity of.

When I had my plastic surgery they stitched me back up with stitches that were under the skin and the thread was dissolvable. Would that maybe be an option you could ask about? By doing it this way the stitches would remain until they dissolved on their own and would not need to be taken out and possibly help the wound to re-open. Not sure if you had stitches in the beginning or not.

That is funny! You might try lifting the lid and rearranging the stuff in it, or get some cinder blocks to stack on it.

It is my understand that whether you have restriction or not you should only be eating 1 cup of food at a meal. I always tried to 1/2 cup of protein and 1/2 cup of a vegetable. Then, if you are still truely hungry 30 minutes after you have eaten you can have another 1/2 cup of food. I rarely if ever found myself to still be hungry. The other thing that can resemble hunger is the need for liquids. Glad to hear you are getting back on track!!!

Restriction is nice, but it is possible to lose weight without it. I think for me, by not having the restriction it made me more conscious of what I was eating and how much. By doing it this way I learned a lot more than I would have if I had had restriction from the beginning and totally relied on the band as opposed to using it as a tool in my weight loss journey.

Yes, but my gallbladder has not come out yet. I was down to taking Prilosec every 3 to 4 days until I had my last fill and now I am back to taking it every other day. Missed it this morning at 8 am and by 9:30 I was wishing I had not forgotten it at home. However, I am not too tight. Did he give you a Rx for the heartburn?

Is your family seeing the real you right now anyway? My guess is they are not. The real you is not a big person, the real you is hiding within a big person and begging to come out. So, reschedule and let her out. We will all be here for you as you give yourself a lot more time to spend with your family in the future.

Eat some little ice cubes to help your need to chew. You could even make your own with juice or Crystal Light for flavoring. WW makes a good fudge bar which can be chewed but in essence will become a liquid.

Due to my dealings with my insurance company and my employer on some other issues this year, it is my understanding that the insurance companies are not the ones that decide whether or not the lap band will be a covered procedure, it is our employers. Each employer/company gets to chose what groups of procedures, diseases, etc. they will cover. The insurance company may then put restrictions on it such as the 6 month doctor supervised diet, the psychiatric consult and other tests, but once these conditions are met they will cover the procedure if it is on your employer/companies list of covered procedures.

As you know, here in the USA they use only the 15/17cc Inamed Advantage lap band. It's so big that it's like putting a "Hula Hoop" around your stomach. LOL. This is not correct. I (a female) have a 10cc band. A friend of mine (a male) has a 4 cc band. We were both banded in the states by the exact same doctor within 10 months of each other. All of the other patients I have spoken with at our monthly meeting have either a 4cc or 10cc band. I believe there are some other options out there now, but I don't believe they are the "only" options. and this is my opinion, its so you need more fills and have to go back, thus the insurance pays more over the long run. I've been to several post surgery support groups in my area and all the post-op patients complain that it takes them 6 months and numerous fills to have restriction. And its because their doctor just adjusts the band in small amounts of saline. More trips to the doctor for fills, more money in their pocket. But this is just my opinion. LOL Yes, this is your opinion and I do not feel that it is correct or fair. I was a cash patient and my fills for the first year were 100% included in the price of my surgery. I had an office visit every month for the first year whether I received a fill or not just to make sure things were going well. Even patients whose insurance paid receive their first year of follow up care for free. It is kind of like when I had my knee surgery, I had three post-op visits at no charge because they were included as a part of the surgery cost. I have nothing against the doctor's in Mexico, but I am guessing that most anyone that went to a doctor in Mexico would have gone to an American doctor if insurance would have covered the procedure and you would have only had to pay $2,000 for the surgery as another friend did because their insurance covered it. We have a doctor in this area that gives more aggressive fills than mine. When one of his employees came to work for my doctor what they discovered was that my doctor has a lot less patients that need emergency unfills (often in the middle of the night) within a few days of having a fill. The goal of my doctor is to help the patient learn to work with their band and make good food choices, not just cinch them down and see how fast they can lose as this is not healthy, nor is it a contest. We get too hung up on the idea that we need to lose the weight quickly and then we get our panties in a wad when we feel that we are not losing fast enough. As far as I was concerned, the fact that I was losing or staying the same and not gaining meant that I was headed in the right direction, regardless of how fast or slow it was occurring. The other is that in the USA, your lap band surgeon can ding the insurance company a few more times before you achive restriction. Good grief, no wonder so many in the world have negative opinions of Americans, even Americans have negative opinions of their fellow Americans. What I have discovered is that in the end, my cash payments in the states vs. the cash payments of patients who go to Mexico ended up being a difference of about $3,000 when hotels, airline tickets, companion fees, fill trips, etc. are all taken into account. For me, that $3,000 bought me peace of mind knowing that my doctor was a phone call and/or 20 minutes away. I also find comfort in knowing that the place that did my surgery was also going to be the place that would do my fills. Those monthly visits gave me confidence each month that I was on the right track whether I received a fill or not, the barium swallow proved that nothing was wrong with my band, and I never had to wonder if I did or did not need a fill, nor did I have to save up for trip to get a fill. I have nothing against lap band doctor's in Mexico, I think they do a great service as do many lap band doctor's in the US and Canada. We are going to find good and bad in any country if we take the time to look. There is no way one doctor could do absolutely everyone's lap band surgery and fills which is why we have choices in doctor's and choices in whether or not we are going to speak ill of other's in a "just my opinion" sort of way. I am not saying that you should choose a US doctor over a doctor in Mexico, everyone needs to do what is best for them, I am just asking for common courtesy and respect for all doctor's trying to help us change our lifestyle and live healthier, longer lives. With that being said, Happy New Year to everyone!

My first nephew was born in 2001 and my second in 2003. Moved from TX to MO in 2003 to be closer to my nephews. My dad had triple bypass surgery. Bought my first home - boy did I learn a lot. Watched a lot of my friends get married and start their families. Started working on my doctorate - hoping I will complete it in the next 10 years, but no promises. Paid cash for my car. Lost my grandma last year. Did a Mission Trip to Honduras. Traveled to Whistler, B.C. Spent 3.5 weeks in Australia (climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge, did a two day hike thru the rainforest, spent a night in a hammock in the rainforest, held a Koala, got food poisoning and dehydrated, snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef, took two overnight train rides, rode a camel in the desert, took an early morning hot air balloon ride, tried veggiemite (nasty stuff), drove on the "wrong" side of the rode, swam at a waterfall). My brother got his dream job this year and was able to move his family back home and into my grandma's house. Had lap band surgery 2/29/08 and lost 82.5 pounds. Had a tummy tuck and an arm lift and gained a whole new outlook on life. Have met a lot of wonderful people thru various venues. Two weeks ago I brought home a 4 week old kitten who likes to walk across the keyboard when I am typing (hope I catch all of her "additions"). The most exciting thing I would have to say is that I got skinny - something I have never in my life been able to say!

The recommendations from your consults sound pretty much like mine in regards to the extended TT, which I believe is also called a lower body lift. For me, I could not justify the expense of the extended TT so I talked to my doctor again about doing just a regular TT. He said that he would cut from where my body touched the table on each side. My incisions go just a little bit around to my back. In the end, the only think the extended TT would have helped was my love handles and honestly, those were the least of my concerns. I told my surgeon that I wanted to be normal, not perfect, and it is my understanding that love handles are pretty normal. There was a little improvement in my inner thighs, but even the extended TT would not have helped much more in that area, it is more designed to help with the outer thighs and mine were fine. By changing this up I was able to add an arm lift on the same day of surgery and I still came in $3,000 under the cost of the extended TT alone. I say all of this to say that you are the one in charge of deciding what you do and don't have done. As my surgeon said, "I won't make you do anything you don't want to do, it is your body and the results will be yours." I am very pleased with my results and can't wait for the day my inner thighs and breasts are addressed.

Does he have any single brothers? Congratulations! I think it is totally worth it. I have never worn a bikini and never plan on wearing one, but even wearing a one piece while swimming with my nephews today I had to touch my flat tummy a couple of times just because. I am the only one who knew they were my nephews, everyone else probably thought they were my sons and by golly, my tummy looked pretty good in a one piece for having a 6 and 8 year old. Yes, it is major surgery, but yes, it is very doable and very much worth it. I really did not have that much pain because my tummy was and to a degree still is numb. The numbness takes 6 months to a year to diminish. My mom experienced the exact same thing when she had her hysterectomy. The day I was able to feel my hip bones for the first time was one of the best days of my life. I had to ask my doctor if that was normal - it was.

I promise I still exist. My internet at home has been up and down a lot lately, which is probably a good thing because I was becoming an addict to this a couple of other sites. I am struggling with the fact that I simply have no desire to drink liquids. I will have 16 ounces of milk in the morning and then I usually have 16 ounces of oj later in the day (I refuse to get sick this winter). Some days that is all I have. Christmas day I realized about 6:30 that night that I had only drank the milk that morning and had had nothing else. Tea, lemonade, caffeine free diet coke and water do not appeal to me at all. OJ and milk are the only things that I feel like drinking during the day even though they have calories and the oj has a lot of sugar. Some evenings I have a cup of hot chocolate, but once again it has calories and sugar. Anyone else find that they simply are not thirsty and that liquids are not appealing to them any more? I had a NSV today, my 6 year old nephew told me that I was really skinny. I asked if he remembered when I was bigger and he and his 8 year old brother both remembered. I then caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror and thought wow, I really do look skinny, especially in the new workout clothes I got for Christmas - I would have jumped up and down with excitement but I have been on the boys for jumping in the house all afternoon. I may have to go buy this outfit in every color available. I also received a 4 week old kitten from my grandparents for Christmas. It's mother abandoned it so I have been feeding it with an eye dropper. I think I have been feeding it too quickly because the other night it took me a while to figure out if it was my tummy gurgling or the kitten's tummy gurgling. In the end it was the kitten's, so now I like to say that my kitty and I both have restriction, I am just a little more patient and polite with mine.

Merry Christmas to you!!! Put a bow on yourself because this is the best gift you can give to yourself and those you love.

I think it is definitely normal, especially when water weight is often what is lost in the beginning. This is also why we hear so much about the last 5 pounds being so hard to lose.

God must have replaced the fat he made mine with and put in something else because the have not shrunk. I have gone from a 46DD a few years back to a 42DD. The back fat took care of the band size, but the cup size is still holding strong. Even my doctor was shocked, but it is what it is.

It does exist, but for me I didn't find it until after I reached my goal (not trying to bring anyone down). It really doesn't feel any different, I eat the same amount I always have since being banded. The difference is that I don't get hungry and don't even realize it is time to eat until I look at the clock and realize it is 1:30 and way past my normal lunch time. Regardless of whether you hit your sweet spot or not you can and will lose weight - I did.

Wow! I bet if you superimposed the current pic with the old pic you would be half of your old size. Congratulations!!!

Mine wasn't horrible and 10 years ago I would have loved to have been where I was size wise when I had my TT and Arm Lift. I did not have to have these surgeries, but I decided to have them because if I was going to do this I was going to do it all the way so that there was no turning back. My inner thighs and breasts are my next issues to deal with, but they will just have to wait a bit longer. If the hanging aprong is bad enough some insurance companies will cover the plastic surgery. Things such as rashes, infections and any other hygiene issues usually have to be proven, but if this is the situation you eventually find yourself in it is worth a try. I have some love handles that my doctor would have liked to have removed, but they didn't bother me enough to justify the extra cost of a lower body lift. You may discover that even if you do have some hanging skin that it doesn't bother you enough to even consider having more surgeries. Don't let what you may or may not look like in the future rule your mind right now. What you need to focus on right now is getting the surgery set up and becoming a healthier you. Future surgeries can be thought about when the time comes.

I am getting ready to have my port relocated in a couple of months. I can tell that there is a slight "mound" in the area where my port is, but with clothes on, even the clingy stuff I wore this summer, it is not noticeable to anyone else. By no means does it stick out like an "outie" belly button. After losing my weight and having a tummy tuck there is no padding between the port and my skin which is not a big deal other than I hit it constantly. Carried a huge stack of books out of the library a few weeks ago and they wanted to rest right where the port is. When I sit down in certain pants the waistband and/or belt slips under the port. There really isn't any harm in leaving it other than it makes me nervous and it is hard to wrestle one handed with my 6 and 8 year old nephews because I feel like the other hand needs to be over my port to protect it. I do know that the doctor that did my surgery usually puts the ports right near the belly button, but most other doctors tend to put is higher up and closer to the left side of the rib cage. So, for many of you this may not even be a problem depending on where your doctor places your port.

There is a difference between tough love and meanness. Those who chose to be mean to others need more than tough love, they just flat out need some love. It is sad when people have fun putting others down, but that is unfortunately how some people play the game, we just need to ignore their tackiness and do our best to love them in hopes of helping them better themselves, even though they have no intention of doing that for us.

Come on, you can do it! This 160 friend is anxiously waiting for you to join her! =D>

Do you have some really close friends that you could share with as opposed to counseling? I have been down a road that is pretty parallel to yours. Part of the reason I had my TT was because I just looked like a smaller version of the old me will all the rolls and bulges in the same place. In fact, the smaller me was probably worse than the bigger me because it just kind of hung there. I have had a man in TX that I would have loved to marry at most any point over the past 14 years, but after my trip back to TX in October I finally decided that I had to step outside of my box (actually I kind of fell out of it). I have been out with 2 guys in the past month and the most recent one said things to me that I have never had anyone say to me in my life. Although I was kind of shocked at his boldness considering I had just met him at the library a few hours earlier I willed myself to take it in stride. I told him that I appreciated his compliment, but I did not allow it to woo me to the point that I was not able to keep my head on straight. Yet at the same time I soaked it in as what I hope to be the first of many more compliments to come, just not from him. Since you are married I am not going to suggest that you set up a profile on a dating site, but I am going to suggest that when a man compliments you or turns his head to look at you, accept it and continue on. Consider this one of those NSV's because it truely is. For most of us previous looks from men had nothing to do with the Wow factor, but rather the look of fear because if she falls there is no way I can help her up or get out of the way in time. I have some really good friends that would never take advantage of me, even though this is a fear I have lived with since my childhood as well. I just have to make a conscious decision every day to remove the detrimental thoughts that creep into my mind and tell me that someone might be a bad person. That doesn't mean that I let my guard down completely, but I have to give them the benefit of the doubt. I have rambled on long enough, but I encourage you to do something so that you can see yourself in a new light.