LAP-BAND Surgery Forums

Well, I am officially over being sick and was able to schedule my surgery again today. I'm still annoyed that I couldn't have it on January 9th. But I have my choice of February 2nd in an out-of-network hospital that Dr. Quebbemann operates at every week, or February 6th in an in-network hospital that he operates at once a month. I'm leaning towards February 6th in-network, even though it'd be better for me to have it on Feb 2 due to my work schedule (Valentine's Day and the weekend before are extremely busy for me and I need to be in top shape for those dates). I am very mildly concerned that the staff and after-care at a hospital which only sees the doctor once a m…

What I mean is, for a Protein drink, for example. How much can you drink at one time? Do you just sip on it for a while? I bought a shaker bottle that holds 16 ounces for making a Protein Drink and I'm thinking you aren't going to be able to just drink that down, sipping til it's gone?? Thanks!

Can anyone tell me how much the surgery costs in USA???? I live in Illinois....My insurance sucks - GHP - they are denying me with an exclusion policy.

How long afer I get the surgery should I get the 1st fill? And does it Hurt???

This website is a sign from God for me. I am greatful for the openness everyone here shares. I will be banded on January 25th. I had an appointment for gastric bypass (roux en Y) but chickened out because of all the risks and internal disfigurement. I need to be a mom to my kids. How long will I be "out of commission" after having the lap band procedure? Thanks for all input. Dar:)

Hi i am new to this so please bear with me. My husband have agreed to have the lab -band done , but his doctor who also agreed have not given us any refereal or guidline, i seems like the doctor is not putting in any effort on our part, any suggestions? By the way hubby is past 500 ponds so it is a health matter.

How do you know when you need a fill? Is this typically covered by insurance? Dar

<!-- / icon and title --><!-- message -->Hello everyone, I plan on having my surgery about 3 to 4 months from now. Im starting to eat better now and take vitamins. Can anyone recommend what I should be taking? Im 40 so I guess a Caltrate 500+D would be good to start with. Im confused about what vitamin, there are so many and they have all different things in them The One A Day Womens has Calcium so maybe thats not good to start with, do I need Iron? Is just a regular multi vitamin ok? Its so confusing? If anyone can give me advice on what would be good for me and also what I can continue after my surgery. Thanks all of you, This board has been so helpfull!

Went for my 1st fill today. My Dr. asked me a few questions and then let me know that he wasn't going to do the fill. I have lost six pounds this month and I am not hungry at all. He considers this a huge victory and will see me in 2 wks. I was devistated and actually cried a little (esp. after driving 2 hours in a snow and ice storm to get there). Then this evening I went out with my family and was amazed at how little I actually am eating and still feeling satisfied. First time eating out without feeling self conscious about my eating. I actually had just a few bites over the evening and brought over 3/4 of the meal home. Guess I can give this fill thing a few …

Almost banded three months and have lost a considerable amount of weight. However, now I am seeing changes in my clothes, but not changes on the scale. What is going on metabolically that make you lose inches and not pounds?:ermm

I found this article online and thought that you all my like to read it: http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2006-01-02-obesity_x.htm

Hi everyone, Yesterday I was feeling pretty good but now I realize it was because of the Meds I was on and still numb feeling from the surgery it self. Also my Dr. gave me a shot to numb my port area for 6-8 hours.. To help with the drive home. Today I am In so much pain. I have pain in my OLD port area and in my NEW port area. As you know I had my port replaced due to a leak. I ask my Dr. to also move my port down a little because it was sitting right under my ribs and rubbing on them when I sat down for long periods of time. This made it hard to drive without wiggling in my seat. My Dr. also gave me a fill of 2cc's while I was under, which scared me very much tha…

Hi All, I've tried contacting the Dr's office today but it is closed. I am scheduled for surgery on the 12th of Jan and just found out from work that I have to travel on the 3rd - 8th of Feb. Does anyone know if the doctors have any issues with traveling out of the country this soon after surgery? I won't even have my first fill quite yet. I have to approve the flight itinerary today, so any help is appreciated! Thanks so much! Kim

Hi Everyone Its been some time since ive posted, I had my band fitted in september 04 and have lost about 20kilos(hope you can all understand that) I live in Sydney Australia and we work in kilo's not pounds but if anyone can tell me how to convert great. Anyway I was going really well and then I kept getting fills but struggled with my weight the whole time and really need to diet to loose weight but I make many wrong food choices, such as ice cream and potato chips I can eat most things the doctor took all the fill out and said that I had only kept about 3ml's in the band and that I have a problem with the band the tubing needs to be fixed, this means another operati…

I decided to FINALLY start working on the tummy and last night tried to do some stomache crunches... It was somewhat painful... like sore from surgery still? Has anyone else had a problem with stomache exercises? (I am almost 2 months banded) THANKS!!!

Hi,<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p> <o:p></o:p> I was banded Dec 15th and followed all the rules pretty closely, there were a couple of cheats, but they were small. I have been moved up to the 2nd tier of food, which is mashed potatoes and cottage cheese...that sort of thing. A few days ago, by husband made some thin crepes, and I though I would try one, so I put less than a table spoon of chunky peanut butter on it and a spoonful of honey ...needless to say two bites in, and I could no longer swallow....it really freaked me out, so I called the nurse she said don't worry, but then the…

I know that the best advice is to do something to occupy yourself, so when you get in "munchie mode" when your not hungry what do you do?

I'm sure y'all may have discussed this before, but am curious if anyone here has been banded several years. Just curiuos about long-term results. Diane

Hi Everybody! I am going for my second fill the end of this month, and while I wish I could be going back to see Dr. Martinez, and have it done under flouro...I just don't have the time to fly across the country right now. I am using a Dr. in Frederick, MD who seems to come pretty highly recommended...but I am still nervous because she doesn't use flouro. I am still not even sure if I need a fill. Some days I am always hungry and could eat every hour, while other days I am not huingry at all. But...my weight loss seems to have really slowed and instead of losing 2-3 pounds a week...I am only losing like 1-2 every other week. Plus I have been able to eat bread (half a …

Ok when I first got my fill in November I was too tight. But my fill dr. is in a different state and I didn't have the money to fly back so I waited it out. So for the past month and half I've been fine... the occasional PB but mostly when I'm not paying attention and eat too fast. But the last three days i've been super duper tight. I've PB'd the last three days. not every meal but at least once a day. Tonight I PB'd water... granted I drank it too fast but still.... I think I'm getting ready to start my period. So is it just being flakey and should I wait it out again?? It could be because of my period.... but I don't want to hurt my band. what would yo…

Hello out there , I am going to be having surgery next sat. Am very excited but a little scared about it. I know it is the best thing to have for me but traveling so faraway can be a challenge. please give me some in put out there. i have read the book lap-band for life cover to cover. anita

OMG, I can't believe it......I crossed my legs tonight....it just happened! I was not thinking about it or trying....it just HAPPENED!!! I am so excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why does food have such a hold on me? As hard as I have tried I cannot figure it out. I have come to realize that it is an addiction, a VERY STRONG addiction that I cannot overcome as hard as I try. So I went in for my second fill yesterday, was told to have liquids for a few days ect ect. Yeah that worked for one day, today I went out to eat with some friends and ate more than I NORMALLY would have without the band. It wasn't even healthy choices and it sure wasn't liquids...and as I ate it I even thought to myself "ya know this isn't even that good, why am I cheating with this" but I kept eating...and eating...and eating. I HATE IT! I can start off with the best o…

Well I had my "last supper" during the Rose Bowl last night. Now I start my preop diet. I chose a Sonic Chili cheese Coney with Chile Cheese Tator Tots, Mozarella Sticks and chocolate shake. Share what you had please. M:p

What is PB????? No, I don't mean peanut butter. I mean as it relates to the band. I know, we newbies can be a bit irritating but just remember you were a newbie once too. Thanks.

You may need AOL to view this. If anyone has difficulty let me know and I will copy and paste. http://diets.aol.com/newsandtrends/obesitysurgery

I am on the schedule for Jan 19. Had a date for Nov 10 but my Mom passed away on that day. I started the pre-op diet today and am feeling deprived but am dealing with it. I noticed on some of the post that loss is not what I hope for in some people. I can see it takes more self control than I had thought it would. Glad to know that in advance. My doc told me it is a tool not a magic bullet. Looks like he is right. I will rely on many of you to help me get on track and stay focused. I know the clinic I go to has great follow up too. Gonna have a new attitude!!!!:nervous

Just got home from the Endo test. I have cried and now all I am is numb. TO those that I have already spoken with thank you for your words of encouragement. Yes, I have eroded as well. I am enclosing pictures of the erosion. Dr. Billy seems to think mine eroded due to all the problems I had with my port issues. That makes lots of sense to me. He also said he didn't see the erosion on the initial pass through and only caught it after the turned the camera around and looked back on itself. It was hiding the little bugger. You can see that in the second page of pics Number 16 shows the slight white area to the right. SIGH!! I am making this short as…

Okay, I have been hanging around since before my surgery (9/26/05) and have been very happy for all who are losing while being frustrated with myself for losing very little. Today I went in for my 5th or 6th (can't remember) and my surgeon had an intern (I guess thats what he was) see me. I told the guy that I was very frustrated, most who had surgery in Sept. have lost on average, 40 pounds and that I really am upset. I told them "no" I haven't made the wisest food choices but I haven't gorged myself either. If I were good at dieting I would have lost weight long ago. ANyway, the intern told me he would give me a fill. I said "please don't say you are giving me .5…

SOMEONE PLEASE HELP!!!! I HAVE BEEN BANDED SINCE 9/19/05. ABOUT ONE WEEK AGO I NOTICED MY HAIR FALLING OUT MORE-SO THAN USUAL IN THE SHOWER. NOW IF I JUST RUN MY FINGERS THROUGH MY HAIR 10 - 20 STRANDS COME OUT AT A TIME. I WENT FOR MY 3RD FILL YESTERDAY. THEY TOLD ME TO TAKE 2 VITAMINS WITH IRON PER DAY BUT THEY SAID THERE'S NO GUARANTEE - THAT UNTIL MY WEIGHT STABILIZES IT MAY KEEP FALLING OUT. I PROJECT 5 POUNDS PER MONTH FOR AT LEAST 8-9 MORE MONTHS. I'LL BE BALD FOR GOODNESS SAKES!!!!!! ANYONE GOING THROUGH THIS? ANY SUGGESTIONS. I AM IN DESPERATE NEED OF HELP. IT'S JUST HORRIBLE. MY HUSBAND IS NERVOUS TOO. HE SAID IF IT DOESNT STOP HE WANTS ME TO TAKE THE BAND OU…

As a proud member of the 'Slow Losers', I promised to start a thread of my NSV's. I'm wearing clothes I haven't worn in years. Before my surgery I ordered a pair of custom fit khakis from Land's End (if you haven't tried their custom fit service - it's awesome - but I digress) By the time the pants showed up 6 weeks later, I had gained enough weight that they didn't fit. I, of course, blamed it on bad measurements and threw the pants into the closet, meaning to return them. I was digging in my closet yesterday and came across these same khakis. I tried them on - they fell off! and I mean FELL OFF. I'm going to take them to the tailor today and see if she can fix them. …

Thought I would share this with you incase you were having the same problems I was having. Most of the times when it was time to eat and I would be having some chicken or some other kind of meat, it would immediatly get stuck. Not sure if it was b/c I would not chew it enough or what. The other day I was having some chicken and I decided to take my food chopper (pampered chef - manual one) and chop up the food into little itty bitty pieces. When I started eating it, it went down SOOO much easier. It even helped my "picky" kids eat all the meat on their plates as well. An added bonus!! Just thought I would share with everyone! A third bonus... can release stress…

OK, I think this band is having some definite undeniable physical effect. Afterall I'm eating 3 small meals a day totalling 1,000 to 1200 calories and no hunger pangs, I'm not struggling with it in the slightest. But I also think a lot of the "restriction" I say I have is all in my head. I'm eating about a cup of food at a time, but I'm not getting stuffed, yet I know definitely to stop. Is it the expectation that a cup is all I should eat? Is it the slow and cautious way of eating that makes it easy to stop? I dont know and I dont care. All I know is it's working. I go to see the surgeon in two weeks for my first fill, I guess it'll be very tiny because they weig…

Hi all, You may or may not know that I am a newbie having some tripidations about getting the band. SO I took myself to a Lap Band support meeting last night. It was a small group, about 6 of us. I was a little surprised at how much the banded people in the group did not know about how to eat, food selections, erosion, slippage, etc. One of the things I asked the doctor was about erosion and he said 2 in 100 people will experience it within 3 years. I also asked about long term and he said the band probably would not last the lifetime and would need to be either replaced or removed or left inside at some point in a bander's life. So, additional surgeries are l…

One of my original incisions formed a very annoying kiloid. During band removal, Dr. Billy was nice enough to remove the kiloid, though there's a chance it will come back bigger. The rest of my incisions are flat. Today at work I realized how my bra really irritates that area below and between the boobies. I wonder if my bra caused that original kiloid to form from rubbing against it? Looks like I have a medical reason for not wearing a bra. Just don't ask why I carry one in my purse. Did anyone else get kiloids? Thanks.

Hi everyone! Thanks for the warm welcome. I am three days out from my surgery and feeling better. I went to work today for about 5 hours and it was ok but I was about to collapse when I came home! Is there another get together already set up? I definitely want to try and make it.

Hey you guys, we all need to exercise and some of us are more disciplined then others. When I was going to the Take the Challenge Program, we had a personal trainer who was excellent. Would you guys be interested in getting together, instead of eating, to work out with the trainer. He would give us one on one information for our excersize needs. Depending on the number of us it would cost less then it does for us to go out and eat, between $5 and $10. As far as a location, I will look into that. The trainer may have a location that we can use. No excuses because he modifies for any disabilities or injuries. He uses your own body weight, chairs and bands. Let …

Happy Birthday Cindy !!! :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana

I know how many calories and how much protein I need. But can anyone tell me how much fat is too much? Yesterday I had 1125 calories, 63 proteins and 35 fat. Today 960 calories, 52 protein and 27 fat. (I know not enough cals and pros) 35 and 27 sound like a lot. Do you count your fat grams??

:banana :banana :banana Waiting for sleep study results... Okay on everything else.

I need a psych eval, and was wondering if anyone has a suggestion for a Dr. I would like to get this done this month, but can't find a Doctor with experience with weight loss patients. For thoes of you that can recommend I would appreciate the name and number of the Doc that did your Phych eval. My PCP is goofy, so I need the info to tell him so I can get a referral. I don't care where the Dr is located ...will travel for evaluation :Bunny

I know I don't post a lot and I guess this is not the place but I am so angry and sad about what happened and I found out today. I went to the Dr. For my first Infertility consultation. We have been trying for 3 years to no avail. I head up to the front of the line and the woman is coaching a new emplyee about the procedures ect. Well when I come up I give her my medical card and she says very loudly. "Oh she is here for infertlilty!" I am a little taken aback...but never the less I begin to give her my $10 co pay. So she says Loudly again, "Oh you don't pay up front for Infertility! Your district (I am a school teacher) covers 50% which is great for INFERTILIY" N…

Sorry to ask this here, but I’m scared. I don’t know what to do or have anyone else to ask. I’m what I call “irregularly regular”. Irregular in the sense that I never know when I’m going to get my period. Regular in the sense that it always lasts for 3.5 days, four at tops. Last month, I got my period and it lasted for almost two weeks. That has never happened to me before. I figure it might have to do with my recent weight gain (about 30 pounds since July) and the related hormone changes. I haven't felt "healthy" for a while now. After my period ended, I was fine for about two weeks. Then I got my period again. I’ve had it now for over a week and it’s very heavy and…

Hey guys - I had my second fill on Thursday, December 22nd. According to Dr. Gonzales, I now have 3 cc's in the band. I was surprised. I can eat just fine. I fill up. I could not finish a kids meal at Chick-fil-a. I have no perspective. I guess that is good :-) I have avoided steak and other things that are supposed to be problematic. I at too much at Christmas dinner and had my first PB incident. It was not too bad - just a bit - but a sure sign to knock it off. Hope your holidays were fantastic!!!!

:sick Ok, so I've been sick for 6 weeks now with a horrible bacterial infection in my sinuses. I was put on antibiotics and after taking them for 10 days it returned worse than before. I am so sick of being sick! I have another Dr appt on Tuesday - but do any of you out there know of any other remedies outside of antibiotics? I just went to the store and got some garlic (apparently a natural antibiotic) and more Sudafed - I should by stock in the stuff! I'm also concerned with taking all these pills...have any of you had difficulty with pills getting stuck going through the band? They seem awfully large, and if I have a hard time swallowing them it seems it would be tough…

Has anyone had issues with painful hiccups when food is trying to pass through the band? After my surgery and first fill, I would have mild hiccups that lasted about a minute - whereas I had not really ever had them before. Since my second fill to 2.0cc on Monday, the hiccups have increased in intensity, duration, and frequency if I attempt anything more than liquids. Thanks!

Hey Girls, I posted my before surgery pic and my six month pic in the General section of the board. I wish someone could put them side by side. Not sure how to do that. But go check it out, I see a big difference. I so love my band! Angie

I try to avoid taking pills unless I absolutely need to, but I was wondering what exactly are NSAIDS? I know we are supposed to avoid them, and I figure I should at least know what they are! Thanks!

Ok gang! I'm newly banded on 11/17 and had first small fill on 12/15....but am going back 1/9 for a little more. Question, when you reach optimal or good fill point...........do you actually feel full after eating "say 1 - chicken breast? or a salad or a few bites of potato or oatmeal or whatever....and I mean that feeling right under your breast bone that says I'm stuffed????? At this point.....i can eat an awful lot and still not hit that real full feeling? So - is that what I should be shooting for when I get filled? and when you hit this point..............what can actually get thru the small hole? Right now - I'm just struggling to maintain? HELP PLEASE …

Hey everyone, after all my bitching, I am here to report I am rabbiting this week. One week ago I made a committment to exersize 6 days per week and track my food on fitday.com and it's paying off. One week ago the scale said 227 - this AM it said 223!!!! Imagine that, ME, rabbitting!!!