Doddie63

Check with your doctor, but I would just stay away from any lifting until you heal and are back on solids. Some people have a bit of a problem with gas, if you walk and cough and follow the doctors advice, you will come to the "other side" in good health. Doddie

Ang1982. I believe, that the medical system in Canada covers you for any emergency not matter what the problem is. You just have the ER contact Dr. Yau for instructions by telephone. They cannot turn anyone away according to the health act. That is why many people who can't afford the BC Med. payment each month attend the ER. They will be looked after no matter what. And don't forget, your GP gets involved as well in your care. So whatever you decide outside the country or within the biggest problem for me was fills. I personally would stay in Canada because of the future care. Doddie

<p>Argon: If you do come to Vancouver, we have a support group that meets monthly at the Lions Gate Hospital. We have a HUGE total of 4 and you would be very welcome. Doddie</p>

Yes, Marilyn is the one. She is trying to set up a support group for Halifax. I wish you luck in getting a fill doctor. It took awhile for me to find a fill doctor here in Vancouver, but thanks to the net and TLBC, a bariatric surgeon has agreed to take me on. Now I don't have to travel to TO. doddie

well done Bandiva. You should be proud. Doddie

As the port is just under the skin, yes everyone can feel it. Not all the time, for instance when sitting. Unless you are a 'skinny' when it comes to needles, a fill needle feels like a small prick and over in seconds. My port is on its side so it take sometimes a few pricks but really the pain is nothing to worry about. Think about your flue shot, similar. Doddie

Yes, he does. He has a list posted on the internet of all the fill doctors, nurses, etc. There is one listed for Vancouver I believe she has an office in the Medical Dental Building. Either type his name in for a search on the web or contact Dr. Cs clinic and they will tell you. Doddie

To band or not to band. That is your question to answer, BUT, I have the band and I too went thru the doubts and fears after the decision. Then I started to think. I have dieted many times and when I reached or almost reached my goal, slowly it would start coming back on. Very few can control their desire to eat 24/7 small portions or to abstain from favorite foods. With the band, when you reach the sweet spot, you will feel satisfied after 3 oz of food and 1/2 cup of veggies and you will feel satisfied for hours after. To reach that level, you must first learn how to control your eating which could be PBing and to learn to incorporate exercise in your daily routine. But at the end of the day, the band to me is the only thing keeping me feeling so good about myself. No one can make this decision, but if I could I would say "caste the doubts aside and go for it". If it doesn't work, you can have the band removed but if you don't try, you will never know what thousands of banders already know. The band is their life savior. Doddie.

100: I tell anyone that will listen I am so proud of my decision but, when I told my sister who is very overweight like me, she cut off all contact. She was very jealous. What I am saying, even if you tell you overweight friend for support, be aware as you loose weight and there is no question you will, your friend may resent your success and turn against you. By telling everyone, there are no secrets and so surprises. Tell one person and there is no secrety. I am rambling, I guess, but the point I am trying to make is. The decision is yours and only yours. there are pros and cons to both sides. Doddie

Hi: another thought to travelling outside the country for your surgery. Travel insurance is not there to pay out. the wonderful world of "other related" gives the insurance company the perfect out. You may be in great health now, but what about tomorrow. The band is for life. Also, the insurance companies may well say the band is related to any medical issues you may have in their country then what? The other issue is emergency care. If you attended a BC hospital, you could call out the Vancouver doctor. just some more to think about.

Glad you are OK and Nancy helped you sort things out.

Hi: You don't want to become dehydrated by waiting it out. Contact the clinic first thing friday and ask. Don't wait for the weekend and then be forced to call Dr. Yau out on a weekend. Better to get it sorted out during business hours if you can. Doddie

Liz there is a doctor that will do fills in Halifax. I corresponde with a bander in Halifax and she told me her family doctor has consented to do fills for $30.00/fill. She has told the TLBC of this doctor so keep trying by requesting the head nurse or Nancy. If you can't get an answer, e mail me and I will ask my friend to contact you. Doddie

As I said, Dr. Woodhead does them. Dr Yau, is the pioneer doctor that introduced the band to Canada and he trained Dr. Woodhead to implant the band. As it is not practical for me to travel to Toronto, Dr. Yau referred me to Dr. Woodhead. I find him extemely competent. There are others banded by other doctors who go to Dr. Woodhead as well, but it is understandable that he won't just take anyone without first reviewing their health and band history. It is sad that someone would make such ill informed statements and possibly destroy that reputation is beyond my comprehension. Doddie

Oh. I must add that the fee for fill is $75.00 charged by Dr. Woodhead. Doddie

Uh excuse me. Those were not true words you spoke about Dr. Woodhead. I don't know where you got your information from. Dr. Woodhead charges the $400 consult fee for people like myself that went out of province and suddenly found they had no one to do the fills. He is an excellent young doctor and very good. He is presently going to france to train in the placement of the Fr. Midband so that he has more choice for his patients. He charges the consult fee, because we are asking him to take over another surgeons work and he is taking a huge insurance risk. I would not hesitate to recommend Dr. Woodhead for surgery. It is his youth that he cannot get OR time. More senior doctors have priority as well as heart other emergency type surgeries. He does not have his own private clinic so must use the Government run hospitals. So please do not make such outlandish uninformed statements. You are damaging the reputation of a fine young doctor. Doddie

Best solution to either clinic is to take a taxi. To the TLBC, is is a flat rate of $44 dollars cheaper than renting a car and having to park it. Subway is a great way to get around as well but I am lazy and take a cab. I am from Vancouver, BC and I don't think there is anywhere in Canada that is worse to drive in. We have no such thing as freeways so it is stop start all the way no matter where you go. Welcome to Canada, whichever clinic you choose the doctors are excellent.

Hi: In case Peaches doesn't answer, you can go to two reliable websites. The one most use is Fitday. It has a areally great free program whereby you can track calories, your weight, your nutrition, and it has a journal that you can keep. The other is Sparkpeople. Both are great. Doddie

Hi Peaches: Bi Polar is something I am not familiar with except my brother in law has been diagnosed with it some years ago. Any chance that as you loose weight the medication might be eliminated? In any event, the loss of weight and increased self esteem should help you a lot. I know it has for me alread. As I see the weight slowly going down (1/2 lb per week) I feel pumped.Doddie.

Hi Ang. I started out by going thru a referral service that sent me to Montreal. I then came across the TLBC and read the write up about Dr. Yau being the pioneer doctor that introduced the band to Canada along with Dr. Joffe. I researched them also by checking out news paper articles on the net. At the time, Dr. Woodhead was not known to me except I read he was thinking of leaving the province because he couldn't get OR time. TLBC has a fabulous support system and does not charge for any followup such as fill or replacement of the bands,etc. I MADE ONE MISTAKE by not calculating in the costs of going to TO for fills. I asked my family GP if he would do the fills and I was told I would be supported but when it turned out I had a slightly turned port, he backed off. I had to go to TO for my first fill (which they recommended anyway) As Dr. Yau trained Dr. W. he referred me to Dr. W. who has taken over my care. I really like Dr. W. I know that if you go to the TLBC website, they have a medical financial company that finances bands but I think it would be less costly if you went to your bank and made a loan. Some go to Mexico which is less money but excellent reputations, some go to Alberta for their surgery. Do your research on the web and make you choice. I just know that I would do this all over again. I at last have control of my eating and I would highly recommend TLBC. The money, heck, I would spend that on WL programs, medications, surgery recovery, whatever. My health is worth a lot more than $16000. Is a car more important than your health? Doddie

Hi: Just think if all goes well, you won't need those nasty pills. Yesterday, I was taken off my 2nd BP pill now I am down to one. With weight loss and exercise I am inching towards not having to take any BP pills. Can't wait, hope the same comes true for you. Doddie

Hi Ang. Things are rapidly changing. The band is becoming more and more known and the doctors are pressing for coverage. Contact Dr. Woodhead and find out from him whether or not the band is covered. Who knows, I could be outdated in my information. Go to your family doctor and ask for a referral to Dr. Woodhead that way the medical will pay for your visit at least. Who knows, you may be a candidate for gastric by pass. Gastric by pass is still the preferred way of WLS so please don't give up, contact Dr. Woodhead or Dr. Amson. Doddie

Hi: Contact Dr. Robin Woodhead in Delta. He does the band privately. I was banded by the TLBC in Toronto and they referred me to him for my fills. If he does your band, you will get the fill from him, if you go to another clinic he charges a consult fee and $75.00 per fill thereafter. There is also another doctor that does bands privately but can't remember his name. We are having a Bandsters meeting at the Lions Gate Hospital on Wednesday at 6:30 to 8:00 pm in Conference Room C. Joine us and ask away with all your questions. To tell the truth having the band was the best decision I have ever made in my life. BC Med does not pay for the band but does the gastric bypass which to me is too dangerous. If you wish to contact me by e mail privately feel free. Doddie

Hi: The fill nurse is very experienced and will tell you what the first/2nd/3rd fill will be. However, not everyone has the same restriction when the band is first inserted. For me, I live in BC and I had restriction right from the start, if it ate more than 1 and 1/2 cup, I would PB so when I flew to Toronto, the fill nurse put in four ccs which I found was tight so she took out 1 cc again it was too tight so she took out 1 cc more. I flew back to BC with 2 ccs. The doctor out here has since put in a single cc twice to give me a total of 5 ccs. The point I am trying to make is everyone is different and it is better to go slowly in your fills than to be overfilled the first few times. Talking to long time banders they all say they have the most success with a looser fill than a tight one. Doddie

Hi: don't go looking for difficulties when there are none. Ports are easily filled when they are on the side by someone that knows what they are doing. Also, it is a simple matter to have the port put right if you want to go thru local surgery. Mine is flipped and the doc out here has trouble but the TLBC fill nurse has no problem whatsoever. Doddie