Dolittle

I just heard on the radio that this swine flu thing wasn't airborn,, that means you have to come in contact with a droplet or a person.. Masks won't do anything for you since its not airborn

I can't believe how the months go by so fast. July is the month of fireworks and picnics. For some,, its a celebration of independence. That is,, an independence from food. Being banded and having good restriction, you'll notice your picnic plate doesn't have the huge pile of food on it like the years before. I know,, it all looks soooo gooood! Just remember to take a little spoon of this and a little spoon of that and the band will do the rest. This topic is for those who have either scheduled their surgery or fill in the month of July. Use this topic to hook up with those who are going to be at the OCC during this month and when you get there,, you'll be excided to meet that person you met here.

I think your local county records office can make a copy of your birth certificate, but there may be a charge for that. I know where I live you have a choice of either a regular copy or a raised seal copy. Both will cost, the raised seal version more than the regular.

You know, I have to agree with Cara. We're all proud that you had the determination to go for it and worked your butt off to do what you wanted to do. I hope the band does it's magic. But the husband's letter,,,, I don't know what his intentions are,, but he could be just trying to cover his butt! He could be the kind of guy that after you lose a bunch of weight and other guys start paying attention to you,, he gets weird, real jealous and then nervous. I hope this isn't the case,, but be on the watch. I'm not trying to imply that this is going to happen,, but guys that take that kind of stand when you said you were wanting to be banded usually don't back down like he did.. I'm hoping he's sincere and has realized your committed. We all wish you the best!

I don't know,, I think its dead in the water. I've tried to get things rolling for the original get together that was planned in San Diego/Tijuana. I had a hotel, plastic surgeon seminar, but we couldn't get more than a handfull interested,, and then the OCC wouldn't get on board either because of a lack of interest on the patients part, then it just fell apart. Some patients talked about doing it in Vegas as the backup,, but it just went nowhere. Those who wanted it Vegas never came through in the end, sorry to say,, I don't think its going to happen. Maybe it might happen in the future, we'll see.

99% of the violence has been within the drug gangs fighting some kind of turf war along the US/Mexico border. The OCC is located in a very commercial area of TJ. It's about a mile from the border along the main avenue, the Lucerna is about 8 blocks further south,, along the same avenue. The OCC van drivers stay along this route and there's never been any problems to my knowledge.

I just know about Cosmed, but there are others. There is this chick that knows all the plastic surgeons down in TJ and she runs this personal assit service for plastic surgery patients. Her email is bajabeautycoach@yahoo.com, her name is Vicki, give her a shout. I think the aftercare is the tough part about having PS in TJ. Cosmed is supposed to have their new clinic open around May and they're supposed to start offering and have a floor just for aftercare. Which would be a big plus for Cosmed. I'd give Joyce at Cosmed a call and see how that's progressing. As of now, I think Recovery by the Sea is the only place that does aftercare for PS patients,, and they're wishy washy. I mean the place was just OK,, not what I expected,, but better than going it alone in some hotel, I think that's where Vicki comes in with her personal service.

I think age and how much you have lost are the main factors. I was age 54-55 when I lost my weight. Needless to say,, I didn't like what I saw in the mirror. I went to Cosmed Clinic last October and had a Lower Body Lift.

The month of June is named after the Roman goddess Juno. Juno was the goddess of marriage, that's why so many couples pick June to get married. It's kind of ironic that patients decide to be banded in the month of June. Being banded is sort of a marriage, we hope a marriage for the better. For all of you patients that have scheduled your surgeries and fills,, this is the post that brings us together with other patients that have scheduled their surgery and fill. So,, lets hear from those that will be at the OCC in month of June. Maybe you'll make new friends for life.

I got several emails from forum members thinking "SoCalKid" was a little too blunt. What he wrote was from his perspective and most of it is true. The only parts I think I could disagree on, is he writes that the band won't be effective the first 6 months. A lot of patients will have good restriction from the beginning or right after their first fills. I admit, at the beginning there is a eating learning curve, many will experience what "Babe" went through. Also, the part of eating all you want and the band will dictate what you can do. Eating till you PB is a dangerous game, this is where patients will get into trouble with slippage and other complications. The band is only a tool, you need to learn to come to a soft stop when eating, not the hard stops with PBing. I have also noticed from this forum is that the patients that have success from the beginning, we hardly ever hear from. The quote that's posted the most is" Remember, everyone is different". The "SoCalKid" has a good quote in his post, "Remember, don't panic and be patient"

I have a suggestion,, call the OCC and ask them what time they're running on. I know Mexico operates a little differently when it comes to time zone changes. 1-866-376-7849

I remember after I was banded I waited 12 weeks for my first fill, because I had restriction from the beginning. My first fill at the OCC was only .4cc's in a 4cc band. I was so disappointed, I thought something must be wrong with me to only get a .4cc fill. It turned out to be a huge fill for me. My second fill 12 weeks later was again very small, I think it was only .5cc's. You got to remember, everyone is different, maybe he saw something in the fluoro that told him you would be better off waiting 10 weeks,, I don't know. I do know everyone is different,, this is so true.

As I was telling Cbandster,, I found a nice place a couple blocks behind the Lucerna,, it's called the hotel Real Del Rio. It has just been remodeled and the pictures looked great. I can't say I've personally stayed there,, but it was going to be the hotel we were going to use for the "Band Camp 2009" get together till that fell apart. The managers name is Pablo, and his room rate was priced somewhere between $55 and $60 US. This is his email address, hospedaje@realdelrio.com

I'm the one that gave it the death blow. I happened to be in TJ in May and the OCC sent me in to check and review the place. I stayed there for a couple days. Needless to say,, as far as I know, the OCC doesn't use the Camino and I don't know why it's still posted at the OCC website. IT SUCKED!!!

Bandsters, we would like to hear from all of you concerning your lap band fills. As you know, Dr. Ortiz always recommends that you come back to Tijuana for your lap band fills and aftercare and I know a lot of you do this. But I know sometimes it’s not possible to go back to the OCC for your lap band adjustment for one reason or another. What we’d like is information about whom, why and where you go to for your fills. I’m going to try to compile a list of fill doctors or fill centers that’s a little more complete than the one that is posted. What we’d like is for you to email me and tell me where you go to for your fills, along with contact and pricing info. Include a small paragraph of what you think of this fill doctor or fill center, good or bad. If you could, a small paragraph on why you choose to have your fill somewhere else other than at the OCC. Your opinions would be appreciated and would be confidential. You can email me at occforummoderator@gmail.com Thanks, Dolittle

Increase Your Chances for a Good Fill The following suggestions are good rules of thumb and will greatly increase your chances of getting a good fill. 1. Make sure you are very well hydrated when you come in for your fill appointment. That means at least 6 to 8 full glasses of liquid every day for at least several days before the fill. (Remember, water is your friend). Drink especially well the morning of the fill. If you're flying in, it can be much harder to stay hydrated, so take an empty drink bottle and fill it after you pass airport security. TSA rules state you can bring an empty water bottle past the TSA security check point. Ask the flight attendants for a refill of your water bottle if needed. They say that every hour you’re in the air, you lose 8oz of fluid. So, If your flight is 3 hours long, your down 24oz of fluid. So drink up! 2. Do not to have any solid foods for at least 6 hours before the fill. Don't eat a huge or late dinner the night before. If you're having any trouble (reflux, possible slip, etc) please have nothing but fluids after dinner the night before. In some cases, food can still be in the pouch for 12 or more hours. Any food in the pouch will make it impossible to give a good fill, or get a good fluoro. 3. Don't drink cold fluids for an hour before the fill. That will shrink your stomach and give a false fluoro reading, and a poor fill. Room temp fluids are fine. 4. Avoid getting a fill during a menstrual period or a few days before an expected one. During this time, girls are usually retaining water, and the fluoro will not be as accurate, and the fill will not be either. 5. If at all possible, hang around for at least a few hours after a fill. Don't run right back home or to the plane. It takes the normal swelling after a fill 1-2 hours to develop, and by that time you might be too tight and need to come right back. 6. If you fly in, If at all possible, stay overnight and catch a plane out the following late afternoon or evening. If you are too tight, this will allow time to get a small unfill before you leave. This is not very convenient, but sure beats having to possibly return to TJ in a few days, on short notice, in pain, and at high last-minute plane fares! This is "prevention!" Overfills are not common, but they do happen, even under the best of conditions. Be prepared, and think about this overnight stay. Test your fill the next day before you leave. 7. After a fill, please have liquids only for at least 24 hrs. This allows the stomach to rest and heal. Then, a day of soft foods, then back to regular foods. Full liquids are fine, no need for clears. Remember, if you staying over night test your fill before you fly out. 8. Review the eating and food guidelines again before every fill. You’ll need to refine your eating more and more with higher fill levels, and there will be less and less room for goofs. As you reach a higher fill level, you'll no longer be able to "get away" with things you might have before! 9. Please don't get a fill if you are having any trouble with the current level of fill. This means any regular pain, PB or barfing more than maybe once a week at the very most, not able to get enough calories in, not able to drink enough, able to eat only soft foods or fluids. More fill will NOT help, and will make things worse. Discuss all this carefully with your doctor. You may even need an UNFILL, to keep your band and stomach safe. 10. First fills are routinely given at 6-10 weeks after surgery, but only as you need them. Many people do, some do not. Your doctor will help you decide if you need a fill, just ask. There is no rush for fills. Too much can very easily get you in trouble, and you end up further "behind" than if you had gone slower with fills. 11. Give a fill at least 2-3 weeks to test it. Some fills don't "settle in" for a week or two, and sometimes more. Your weight loss is what determines how a fill is - not any feeling of restriction, necessarily. 12. One of the most important things in determining if a fill is good is choosing proper band foods. Soft foods, liquids, junk foods, sweets, etc, will never be well-restricted, and will never tell a thing about having a good fill or not. Only solid foods give useful info. A good test meal is 2-4 oz of solid meat or chicken - be sure it's soft and moist - and about 1/2 cup veggies. You should be able to eat about a cup of food (no less) and this should keep you satisfied for about 3-4 hrs. 13. Plan regular meals. A good fill will keep you satisfied for 3-4 hrs, but no longer. If you are hungry 5 hrs after lunch, it is not because you have an inadequate fill! Regular meals at planned times are important for a number of reasons; including avoiding snacking, maximizing your calorie burn and normalizing metabolism, which is essential for weight maintenance later on. 14. Learn to recognize your "soft stop" sign. Common ones are chest tightness or "fullness", a sudden runny nose, a single hiccup or burp, an eye twitch, back pain, left should pain. All mean the pouch is full enough and we should stop eating, even spitting out the bite that may be already in our mouths. If you do not, you could progress to the "hard stop" - slimming, pb, barfing. Please remember that good fills are very elusive, even with highly- experienced docs and fill people. There are just too many individual factors involved that the doctors cannot control. Even the fluoro is only a clue, and not entirely accurate - for some of the reasons above. It usually takes 3- 5 fills to slowly and safely creep up on a good level, and they can be safely given a month apart. Trying to go faster with a bigger fill is not the solution, and the stomach rebels at big sudden fills. The goal of the first few fills is not to achieve a good restriction, but to gradually get your stomach used to some pressure so you can tolerate a good fill later. SLOW and GRADUAL is the key! Going slowly with fills can be frustrating, but is well worth the wait to avoid problems.

With all the bad publicity of the drug gang wars, maybe the Lucerna has beefed up its security. Did you talk to the front desk and tell them you were expecting friends?

As you know I post this topic several months in advance. Patients from all over the world are now coming to San Diego/Tijuana to the OCC. The OCC cordinators have been busy and patients have started to schedule lap band surgery and fills for the month of May. A lot of patients have made new life long friends just by chatting with each other here at the forum. Lets hear from the patients that are coming in the month of May, meet your future bandster buddy here at the forum. When you finally meet at the OCC, it will feel like you've known each other a long time.

You can always try www.orbitz.com or go directly to the airline website. It might be a little cheaper if you go to the airline site. An example would be,, Northwest,, www.nwa.com, etc. I always fly Southwest,, they don't charge for luggage. I love them. But, they don't do Canada. Too bad.

I like to add to the good advise that has been posted. Have your Mom look up the posts that are about Cassie. Cassie was very young when she was banded. She has been featured on the Oprah show too. I can say that if your under the age of 18, it's against FDA regulations for anyone under the age of 18 to be banded in the USA. The OCC has banded hundreds of teenagers/young adults. Also, check out the OCC website, they have a section on teenagers and banding. I've said this before,, I wish the band had been around when I was your age,,, do I wish...

I can tell you "lock27" is a bandster,, as to why she's asking these questions,, She'll have to answer that. LOL

Your best bet is to fly into San Diego. The OCC has their own shuttle and driver. It's very safe. Just email your cordinator or the OCC with your flight info and they will be there to pick you up at the airport and wisk you away to either the OCC or the hotel,, that depends on the time of day you arrive. After you have had surgery and spent the next day relaxing, they take you back to the San Diego airport and your flying back home. Nothing to it.

When I was looking for a hotel for the Band Camp 2009 I got alot of info on the Hotel Real Del Rio. It's a couple blocks closer to the OCC. It has just been remodeled and it looked nice. The manager Pablo was really nice and speaks good english. He had prices better than the Lucerna. You can contact him with this email link. Pablo If you or any other forum members stay there,, let us know what you thought of the place.

Didn't know anything about it? What's this about?