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Hi, My name is Laura I am now banded for about 3 1/2 weeks, I have lost 26 lbs so far, How great is that? I have not yet had a fill & my Doc does not do this until appox 6 weeks, but I now see myself very hungry not long after I eat. Night time not so much but during the day I am starving. Breakfast I was eating 1 package of fat free farina, I have now gone up to two. I feel so guilty doing this but if I dont I feel sick. Can anyone tell me what they are (or) were eating at this stage to keep the full. ( all meals please). Also I don't want to seem ignorant but what is BPing.. I know what it is to BP i just don't know what the BP stands for. Thanks Laura

Can't forget the other love of my life

Myself and my handsome man laura & Rich.bmp

Gina, you have know Idea how close we really are.. My Fiance grew up in Lyndhurst and that is where we are living now. Please e-mail me at Katiekiss1@aol.com.. maybe they know each other. he is 40 now.

Gina, I too am from the meadowlands area. My cousin was done by Dr. Ballintine. Alex, I would some information about an east coast bash.. I would love it more if it was in NJ. I travel to NYC everyday to work and would just hate the thought about comming in on a weekend. Although I just looked at the callender and the 23rd is a Friday I can just stay. Let me know details. Thanks Laura

Hi Joe, I just wanted to tell you My 16 yr old daughter just had her lapband done on 4/1. She is down 20lbs already.. She is already feeling better about herself. Some think 16 is to young, but I also had the lapband done and am very happy with it, and knew if it was available to me at 16 I would have had it done. I wish you the best. If you need to know more on how she is doing I will give you her e-mail address.

Is my favorite. I also like Simply by clinique

Lyndsy stinks.

My pride and joy!!

You are right. I will do just that. You pictures look great.. You can see just how successful you have been. Keep it up!!!!

I just went to see him last week. He does teenagers. He is performing surgery on my 16 yr old on 4/1. I have heard nothing but good things about him. When I met him I felt real comfortable letting my daughter experiance and have the success I have. Does anyone here have a teenager that went through the surgery, or know of a website. I would like her to do some reading before surgery.

Not the best before or after.. I am down 75 lbs. Like you Michelle I had an unfill since Sept. I just went back 2 weeks ago but they started me out slow so I have NO restriction. Going for another fill on 2/9/05. I was banded on 8/12/03. Gained 8 lbs since being unfilled .

Thank you all for the pep talk.. I needed it.. I am happy to report I just came back from lunch and had something that I have normally ate while my band was filled.. although no problems getting it down.. i am stuffed.. this has pleased me.. I am just going to make sure my portions are as small as they were before yesterday. Alex, my fellow New Jersian.. thank you for you wishes.. and I wish the same back to you. I don't post to much.. I mostly read, but I am glad to see when I had an issues and needed support you are all here, it's very comforting.

So I have been having a few problems latley with reflux and PBing.. so I had an upper GI.. evrything showed up fine. So now the doc asks me a few questions.. He asked me about liquids.. I explained to him that some parts of the day (morn & Eve ) that liquids sometime back up on me, he said well that's it.. we have to empty your band.. I begged him not to do this.. I knew I was kinda tight with all I have been expeirencing and I just wanted a slight unfill.. he would not give me a small unfill.. was addimit about empting my band. I am very scared, he said I have to go until Jan with an empty band. I am so affraid of gaining weight. Has anyone had their band emptied and gained significant weight?

Thanks for your reply, and please by no means do I think that it was for any other reason but to heal.. I am happy that my doctor was able to just go in a remove the fluid and know it is only temporary, and once I heal I can then go about losing again. I was just feeling a little anxiety due to the fact I have not met my goal yet. I have lost 78 lbs since 8/03 and about 30 to go. The thought of gaining has just scared me to death.

Along with Alex I too have been banded 11 months, and I am down 65 lbs. No problems except for forgetting I must eat slow. My last fill was in february and am no way in the market for another. I am very restricted. I sometimes think I should have lost more by now. Going in I had the 100lb in a yr in my head. I do put it into prospective that I have come along way and 65 lbs is alot of weight. Well that's my story. Laura

Hi everyone, I just learned a very hard and valuable lesson today. Both newbies and old timers can take with them. I have now been banded for 10 months and down 63lbs. I met a girlfriend today for lunch. I work in mid town manhatten. The resteraunt we chose just happen to be closed.. so we said oh well ranch one is right here. Well I ordered chicken tenders came with fries.. I don't do fries to often being they do not agree with me. Anyway I had maybe 3 fries and 2 bites of chicken when I felt the pain in my chest.. I put my food down and tried to let it pass.. It was getting worse.. I got up to use the restroom(I was in so much pain) PB was the only alternitive. WELL and here is the lesson, they did not have a rest room.. I started to panic it was getting worse.. my eyes were now tearing.. I saw A roy rogers across the street, I went in there and again no bathroom.. TGFidays was next door.. so I said ok let me go in there.. well I did not make it.. I PB right on the Manhatten Streets.. It was terriable and embaressing. The moral of the story is always make sure you have a rest room before you eat , cause you just never know when it will hit.

We are not alone.. here anyway. On the streets of Manhatten you are the only one in the world banded.. LOL. I called my girlfriend today, she refuses to have lunch with me anymore. LOL I make her to nervouse she said.

Trust me.. I was so desperate I almost grabed my girlfriends soda and :sick

Was I thought nothing about it. You think being banded ten months you know it all.. I could not believe after all this time that I had experienced such a servere PB.

Hi, I am in need of some advice for my brother in law. He is 25 yrs old and weighs 450lbs. He has Cigna and of course they have denied him. I told him he must appeal this. Can anyone with appeal expeirence guide me, so I can help him? I have called Inamed and they told me that his surgeon would have to get in touch with them so they can work together on this appeal. He surgeon told him he does not get involved with appeals.I did tell him I think he needs to change doctors because this doctor does not have his best intrest in heart. Anyway can anyone tell me what he will need to do on his own to appeal this?

Again Alex, thanks for your replys.. I will tell him everything you have told me , and hope he follows through.. he is not very aggressive and is taking the denial point blank. He does not realize that he has rights and can fight.. I cannot do this for him , I can only help.

Alex, I think they gave a few different reasons.. one of them being experimental.. another was he was not on a supervised diet. I told him to call Cigna to find out the exact reason for denial. I also think the insurance company has guidelines that the doctor does not, one of them being to see a shrink. I told him to make an appointment for one now and to also start a file and document evrything from this day forward. I will get back to you once he calls Cigna. Thanks for your replys.. I want to help him I just don't know exactly how. My insurance Co. approved me within a weeks time.

Hi Alex, Yes he does live in NJ although he does not work for a small company, he works for a well known company. I think his doc feels he needs this done but he just does not want to get cought up in all the paper work. Alex can you please let me know how you started the process of the appeal. Was it you just writing a letter ect? I was banded in Aug I am down 62lbs, slow but I really feel this is the way for him to go. By the way Alex.. do you also have cigna?

Fab, My doc's name is Georger Ferzli.. he is not out of University hospital.. actually he does the surgery at Victory Memorial in Brooklyn. His office is on Cromwell ave in SI.. # is 718-667-8100. He does not do his fills by Floro. Hope this has helped. Laura