leatha_g

yep. I have the occasional margarita. I've also had beer and champagne. However, once I saw how it affected my protein/carb balance for the day, I try not to do it too often. It's a tradeoff that's okay on occasion, as long as you are aware of the empty calories and carbs it adds to your overall day. Like Donali says, this band is about life. Life sometimes means you have a drink or two.

You really don't want to be filled to the max. It's very distressing to be over-filled and unable to swallow your own spit. Creeping up on your 'sweet spot' is much wiser and easier on the esophagus. This is about choices. I choose the wrong things sometimes too, but when I do, I do it with a full acknowledgement that it's going to slow my weight loss down - and it does. Are you drinking enough Water? Are you exercising? Go take this test and see how you answer the questions. This band is as much about adjusting our head as it is our eating. http://bigolalaskan.com/lapband/fills.htm Good luck!! I understand.. Leatha

Welcome to the land of the banded! Gurgling noises are a true sign that you are banded. lol. It is very normal and could even be a sign that you have some restriction right out of surgery. Not all do. That's a bonus! You will notice your band makes many noises as you go along. It's okay - you will get used to it! It settles down after awhile. Good luck! Leatha

Irving is definitely closer than Grand Prairie. lol. I have a cousin who is a cop in Grand Prairie. After the end of this month, I'll be better able to schedule something and meet up. That would be great! Of course! There may be others that would like to meet up too. I don't mind driving, although I don't know alot about this place either. Let me know when you think is a good time! Off to work.. ugh... Leatha

Are you the same Betty I talked to last night in OH? I have Dr. Veninga who I like real well. He's a very experienced laparoscopic surgeon, but doesn't have the experience with bands that some of the other doctors have. He does seem very knowledgeable about it. His staff is wonderful and it doesn't seem like he's overbooking his office just for the money. I really like that too. From what I've experienced, he seems to make plenty of time for his patients, especially new people. I know he dedicates the whole afternoon to like only 2-3 people so he can spend the time it takes to explain and answer questions. I think that's admirable. Leatha

Nope, no milk of mag, but I'm thinking at this rate. It should all be gone by morning!!.........ughhhhhhhhh..

Man, we definitely have Texas represented on this site, don't we? Welcome Courtney, Kyleigh.. everyone new!!

Dr Ponce was in on the FDA trials, I believe. I have never heard anything bad about him at all - only good things. You're very wise to reconsider the states so you can secure follow-up care. This is a very important part of banding. Good luck with your decision! Let us know! Leatha

lol, i remember those days, Alex. I also miss them sometimes, being single and alone now. :think anyway to answer your question - I'm doing okay, I reckon. Still having the pain some. Hoping they can tell me something or at least tell me all is well and I'm just a wuss. lol. I'll be sure to let ya'll know once I hear something. Thanks for asking.

I'm right here! LOL. I don't really have any news. I did my CT Scan - drank THREE - count em 3 friggin bottles of barium.. ack..:eek: Interestingly, I called the facility and made my own appointment, after the darn insurance fiasco yesterday. While I was sitting there drinking my barium, the insurance person called to see if anyone had contacted me with an appointment time. I told her, I'm sitting here in the lobby right now. She asked me who called, I said 'no one, I called them myself, this morning. She was just dumbfounded, then said 'well I'm sorry you had to make your own appointment. ' Well, sheesh.. I would have still been sitting in my apartment waiting on a phone call, I guess. Anyway.. you know how it is - they gotta read it and the doc will get back with me, I guess. While I was getting ready to leave, the radiologist came in and introduced himself and shook my hand. Then, he started asking me questions about my band, how it works, maintenance, etc. He was wanting to get in touch with Inamed to see about getting certified to do fills. That will be a good thing for us outcasts who have no local follow up care. Anyway, I should have told him I'd tell all for a percentage.. lol. So.. no news yet. But, I definitely have a rolling tummy right now. :eek:

My boss and his wife are from there - now living in Dallas.

Did someone say my name? lol.. 'taint me going to Jamaica, although I wished I could. I even have airmiles.. now I'm gonna cry... :think :think :think

It's more in the appendix area, I guess, but it seems more musculoskeletal. There is pain upon standing, pain upon sitting and moving a certain way. More like something might be out of place, like band tubing or a surgical instrument (God forbid). lol. It's not a throbbing, aching kind of pain, it's a sharp, quick pain, sorta like a stitch in your side when running (like I've run in the past 20 yrs. ). Anyway, I'm off to do a CT scan in an hour. I guess we'll see.:cry

Yes ma'am. On the LEFT side. lol

Thanks Neicy. Nope. My pain is on my right side. The doc wants to do a CT scan to rule out any sort of bleeding or hematoma from the surgery. I'm leaning in the direction of a possible hernia. The insurance people are screwing me around. It's funny how they will okay you to have surgery in a facility, but 3 weeks later you have to have a CT scan in a free standing facility. Ughhh... I can't wait until Open Enrollment comes back around.

Thanks, ladies. I think at first, I thought this might be gas too, since it began after my surgery, but when it went on past the pain in my port area, it started to concern me. Now, this past week, I worked and every day the longer I stood the worse it hurt. Last night, I came very close to going to the ER by the time I got home. Anyway, I was able to get into the docs office and he wants me to do a CT scan just to rule out anything serious, I guess. With me taking coumadin, he said there was some risk of bleeding or a hematoma, which I'm going to choose is NOT the problem. My insurance kept us waiting over 40 minutes while they pre-certified a CT scan and had to look up a place in their network to do it. Me and the nurse were both beside ourselves with how long they kept us standing there. It makes sense to me that I had my darn surgery at the hospital right next door to their office. I would have thought that would be the place for me to go for any follow up on my surgery or surgery complications, but NOOOOO, they have imaging centers that they have to refer you to. Last I heard, they are going to call me with an appointment for a CT scan. It's now 4:37 central time. It doesn't appear that it's going to happen today. I should have just gone to the ER. I've spent all this time and haven't had a bite to eat all day. I guess if it gets any worse, I'll just do that... Leatha

I don't recall hearing that, but the only thing I could think of is that maybe because our focus should be on protein we wouldn't need it?

Bright, You are a very pretty lady! Thanks for sharing your photos!

I've had blood clots and phlebitis in my legs in the past too. I avoided those darn socks for years until my banding surgeon told me he doesn't even do surgery without them. Finally, I tried them and they made my legs feel so much better than they had in years. They're not pretty, but they sure were worth every penny, especially when flying. I give them as gifts to my older brother now. lol.

It's funny how those of us who deal with depression and codependency behaviors tend to want to help everyone else but generally don't consider ourselves too much. But, somehow we have to break that cycle and validate ourselves or ask for help. Anyway, I thought I'd actually post something that I've been dealing with now for the last week or more. I had surgery on July 16th to reposition/repair what the doctors said was a slipped band. When they took care of that, they also found a hiatal hernia which really should have been taken care of during my first surgery as I've known it was there since my first pregnancy in 1981. I was surprised my first surgeon didn't do anything with it and I feel that I might have avoided this second surgery if he had. apparently, there is a correlation with hiatal hernias and ill-positioned or slipped bands. My surgery went okay, although I was much more sore than the first time around, but I've been dealing with some pain this past few weeks that I felt would eventually go away. I chalked it up to my insides being tender from surgery. Problem is, this pain is on my RIGHT lower quadrant, about 5-6 inches to the RIGHT of my belly button. Some days it doesn't hurt until later in the evening if I've been standing alot or walking. Sometimes I think it may hurt worse after I've eaten. I can't really pinpoint anything in particular about it except that as the day goes on it gets worse. I drove about 3 hrs away yesterday to take my mom to dinner, then I drove back. Before I left her house I was having sharp pains upon movement and by the time I was nearly back home I was considering stopping at the ER to at least do some xrays or ultrasound. Since it has followed my surgery, I want to think it might be related, but I don't think they did a darn thing on my RIGHT side??? Other than that you have your appendix, which I still have or the other possibility is maybe a hernia? In the past, I'm almost sure that I've pulled a hernia on that side while doing certain exercises or have a really bad bout with coughing or sneezing too hard. There was never anything diagnosed, so it could be possible that it was just a pulled muscle during those times, I just felt like I could feel something sort of 'popping' out. It's hard to explain. So now, I really don't know what to do. I've called my surgeon's office and they said come in tomorrow, my co-workers say I need to go to the ER and have the doc just call over any tests he would ask me to do tomorrow. Anyway, I'm just so hoping this isn't something that will require anymore surgery/hospitalization.

I think it was depression for me. I self medicated, partying too much before the weight. Once I slowed down on that, the weight piled on almost overnight, in my case. Therapists could definitely have a heyday trying to figure it all out, but there were external things, internal things - things coming from all directions when I gained all my excess weight. Once it's there, it's sure not as easy to get rid of. :-( Thank goodness there is now a tool!

Yep. This all sounds pretty familiar to me too. I've been treated for depression pretty much all of my adult life.

Welcome Pam!! Sounds like you're doing well and in good company with our friend, Alex.

Faster weight loss (initially), some people actually WANT the dumping syndrome so they'll be stopped from eating sweets. some people think the 'maintenance' of a lapband is more than they want to deal with. little do they know that maintenance is FAR less than they'll have to deal with with RNY. They don't really register that malabsorption and taking supplements for LIFE literally really means LIFE. They don't hear it when people discuss their incessant flatulence and diarrhea problems. I think it's more of an instant gratification thing.

Sorry to hear of your pain, Rica. I really hope you can get it under control. Leatha