DeLarla

Most of you know I spent the weekend in the hospital having another port-removal surgery. While I was there, Dr. Billy got hardcore with me & Penni about sucessful weight loss. When he mentioned the need for us to count calories, I rolled my eyes at him and told him I refused to ever count calories again. Yes, I lost half my weight, but Billy seems to think I have the capability to lose all my excess weight (I guess I never dared dream that before.) He's one of those evil doctors that requires morbidly obese patients to lose 40 pounds prior to giving them a bypass or Band. I used to think that was really messed up, cuz if we could lose weight that way, we wouldn't need a Band. But he was firm in explaining that the Band isn't going to save us till we save ourselves. We have to be willing to WORK at losing weight. We have to accept the fact that we are not normal, that we don't have normal metabolisms, and that we will always have to make wise food decisions. We cannot compare ourselves to anyone else. I'll use Penni as an example since we just spent the weekend together: Penni and I weigh exactly the same but she's 14/16 and I'm size 20. I eat large meals a few times a day, she eats small stuff every couple hours. She has 1.8 cc, I have 1.7 cc. We are obese, which means we can never, ever expect to eat like a normal person. Most normies don't have to think about eating, we will always have to think, and plan, and be accountable - if we want to lose weight. All that said, and after all Dr. Billy has done for me, I have agreed to complete the homework he assigned. Most people eat about the same their entire adult lives, so I have to write down 50 foods I eat on a regular basis. He said I probably won't be able to get to 50. I am to start with one food at a time and learn it intimately. For example, I love quesadillas so today I might work with cheese. I'll have a quesadilla using one slice, or two slices. Once I have the calories figured out including a little sour cream, then I'll add that to my list. Next I'll learn a stick of string cheese. Then I'll learn 2 tablespoons of shredded cheese, then cubes of cheese. Heck, maybe I'll work on cheese all week. When I've completely learned cheese, I'll never have to learn cheese again. I'll simply know that a grilled cheese has "this many" calories, a quesadilla this many, shredded for a salad this many. Then I'll have completed one food on my list. Next I move on to tuna since it's one of my staples. I like tuna salad with crackers, or on a salad with thousand island and pickles. When I'm done with the whole list, I'll have the stuff so memorized that "counting calories" isn't this horrible chore that makes me scream and pull my hair out. I am NOT happy about having to do this. I resisted for a long time. But Dr. Billy is right - if I want the Band to work, I gotta work the Band. He does not believe the Band is the answer. Diets have failed us in the past, but the Band was designed to restrict our hunger so that limited calories will keep us full and happy for life. I won't call this a diet. We can't call this a diet. This is limiting our caloric intake to cure ourselves of obesity. We will always eat less than normies unless we build more muscle mass to increase our metabolisms. It's in my hands now. If I want to break the plateau, I have to consume 1200 calories a day - and I have to like it (hurl.) BUT... if I stop eating when I'm full, that's all my Band will LET me eat! It's all so simple. I hate it, but it's all so simple.

I was going to reply to this, but it might end up being the biggest thread hijack ever! I'm gonna go post my homework on another thread so I don't walk on Penni-Pooh's toes cuz I love her.

Okay, I retract the big-poofy hair statement! Michelle, exactly what YOU said!

As far as strong anal odors, I'm not talking about "most bypass patients." I'm talking about the small percentage that get this problem. I know of three. I asked one how the odor escapes the butt, since we are usually in control of letting go of our own gas. But she said "it's not like that, the odor just comes out." This isn't just the smell of a few bad farts, it's a constant putrid odor. I asked my new doc about this horrible odor last weekend. I was too loopy from surgery/meds so I don't remember the complete explanation, but he did say that the severe odor problem comes from one particular type of bypass surgery (there are lots of different types.) He also said his receptionist can always tell these patients from their smell (and there's a wide counter inbetween the receptionist and where the patient stands, so it's gotta be pretty pungent.) To answer questions regarding rejection, my current US surgeon says that I am not rejecting the band. There's no known written literature about rejecting plastic (tube) in the body. I was not rejecting the port. I just posted a whole new thread of my latest surgery that explains why my wound stayed open so long, which will give you better information.

Michelle, nobody in the US did cultures because nobody here was willing (or able) to treat a Banded patient. The 2 Urgent Care docs lanced and drained the wound and prescribed antibiotics but told me to go back to Mexico for care. The local surgeon was hesitant to do anything other than clean the wound since he's not a Band doc. And the local Band doc simply sent me for an Upper GI so I could show the results to Billy and was too scared to do anything else (he simply doesn't touch Mexican patients.) Michelle, you gotta admit that you're one of the exceptions when it comes to Americans banded in Mexico on LBT. You practically live in Mexico, and Ortiz does take very good care of you. He offered to take care of me, as well, but I had a lot of options to weigh, one being Ortiz & Lopez used to be partners, and now they seem to be at odds with each other. I didn't want to put Ortiz in any position where he would be stepping on Lopez's feet, so to say. I haven't seen many complaints about Ortiz, but still, when you're having an emergency, getting to Mexico (for most of us) is really inconvenient. I knew that when I had my orginal surgery, but I never expected 8 entire months of emergencies! And it's all because surgeons in Mexico aren't required to offer the same standard of care as in the US. On top of the tube not being tucked in my abdomen (where it belonged) and having it draped under an inflamed wound, my American doc found 6-7 sutures floating around in me. He didn't even know what they were from, but he knew they weren't necessary so he removed them. After all these months, 3 trips to Mexico, all my irritation, the infection, gallons of leakage, a wound that refused to close, etc., you'd think somebody might have taken them out just for sport. Why would ANYONE leave them just floating around? I am not telling people to avoid Mexico. I think it's a great option, but only if you have someone close by in case of emergencies. For me, Billy is about the same distance as Mexico, but I have family and friends an hour away from Billy's office. So instead of flying to San Diego, taking a taxi to the boarder, walking across the boarder, taking a taxi to the doctor, ect., all I gotta do is fly to California, where my friends argue with my family about who gets to pick me up and who I'll stay with. The whole point to this post is to be proactive and make sure you'll have convenient and safe aftercare. I'm not the only one that's been in such a horrible position. There are way, way, way too many of us. And this is only one board, so there are many others that we don't know about. Plus the poor souls who don't own a computer or aren't aware of these boards.

Hmmm... explains my ghost-asthma. Some docs say I have slight asthma, others say I'm nuts. It's all kinda related, like trying to cough a lil liquid out of my lungs. Yes, Alex, I am SUPPOSED to stop eating several hours before bed. I'm also supposed to eat Band portions. I have to do my homework today (see Penni's homework thread.) Today is the day I try to get back on track. This means 3 meals and one veggie snack at 7:00 p.m. I had a hiatal hernia prior to Banding with lots of acid/digestion/coughing problems. But docs marvel at my ability to eat the kinda salsa that makes my head sweat but doesn't burn my belly or give me heartburn. I'm all bass-ackwards.

Paula, mi post es su post. I'm glad to see this one back, hi everyone! Avoid vomitting at all costs. Excessive vomitting can cause the Band to slip. I asked my surgeon, "but what if I get the stomach flu?" He said occasional vomitting shouldn't hurt, but any type of long term, or really violent vomitting needs to be avoided. If you get the stomach flu or have a bad vomitting spell, it's best to get your Band checked to be on the safe side. Slippage isn't fatal, but if your Band slips, you'll need surgery to have it repaired.

Thanks, Vera. My doc was so throrough with me. When you add up all the time he spent at my side, it's probably hours. I owe him a good try. And his advice is loaded with nothing but common sense so it's hard to disagree with him.

Okay, let's try this again, but please think "food" this time. Sometimes it's hard for me to swallow (I have to gulp several times to get food down.) And I choke on liquids. Also, I wake up almost every day with a sore, scratchy, irritated throat. So I'm always thinking I'm getting a cold. I don't have acid reflux, no heartburn, nothing burns, etc. However, while I was in the hospital, I got the answers I needed. I actually DO have acid reflux, which is what's causing my throat irritation. I always thought acid reflux would mean painful burning in my chest and/or belly, like heartburn. I should have been born Mexican, cuz I eat hot sauce and jalepenos on everything, even tuna. Spicy or greasy foods don't bother me at all, but then I wake up with the scratchy throat. So I've been diagnosed with acid reflux and prescribed 6 months of Pepcid. And THAT is what Penni was trying to get at.

I've been a big fan of being Banded in Mexico until this past weekend. I just underwent my SIXTH Band related surgery (four major surgeries under anesthesia; two minor ones, plus countless other lab tests and appointments.) Please do not go to Mexico until you have made an appointment with a local LapBand doctor to discuss your aftercare options. Don't set foot in Mexico until you are sure that you can get the care you need close to home, especially if you have an emergency. Most Band-related complications are not the type that require emergency services, but when you are scared, in pain, can't swallow, can't hold food down, have severe stomach pain, your port hurts or is popping out, you have a leaking infected incision, or any other Band-related complication, you'll want to get to a doctor within a day or two, not by the end of the month. Trust me on this one, many of us have been there! I'm sick with grief right now. I don't want to slam any of the Mexican doctors, because if they practiced in the United States, they would most likely be our top surgeons. However, the standards of care in Mexico are way below US standards. I've had an open wound since May, yet nobody in Mexico (I've been there for 3 surgeries) has ever even did a culture, biopsy, or endoscopy; they just diagnosed and operated. I finally found a US surgeon. He operated on me this week and did everything in his power to figure out why I had an open wound, including an endoscopy, a laporoscopy, lab tests, blood tests, a biopsy, a breath test for H-Pylori - the list goes on and on. Mexican doctors are not bad, but they don't go to the same lengths as required by doctors in America. It's been my experience that they treat you based on their first impression of what may (or may not) be wrong with you. In the US, people are lawsuit-happy. So many doctors have been sued that surgeons here have been forced to uncover every possible diagnosis before making a treatment, but luckily, that means we get the best care possible. Medical Malpractice insurance keeps our local surgeons on their toes. Mexico doesn't share the same problem with so many law suits related to medical malpractice. Kind of a Catch-22 situation. This is simply MY experience. Unfortunately, I've met many others that share these types of problems. If money is no object to you, then do yourself a favor and get it done in the US, where the higest level of medical standards are required to be met. The best way to get Banded would to find a local surgeon that accepts Mexican patients. Go to that surgeon first for a check-up, and to discuss your plans for Mexico. Once that doctor agrees to see you, make a future appointment with him, only THEN should you go to Mexico to get your Band. As soon as your band is placed, go back to your local doctor for a checkup. Keep relations open with both your Band surgeon and your local doctor. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS get a second opinion. I went to Mexico cause it only cost me $7,500. But now I have to add in 5 additional procedures, my traveling expenses, incidental costs, time lost from work, etc. I can't give you the numbers because I'm scared to death to add them up. I went there to save money, but I could have gotten banded locally and saved myself all the horror. So, before going to Mexico, you gotta post here that you've got aftercare lined up or I won't let you go! ALSO, MAKE SURE THEY PLACE THE INAMED BAND! There are many bands out there, but you will have a very difficult time getting someone to service your band in the US unless it is the Inamed LapBand.

ChicagoBoy... by the time I add up all my surgeries, $15,000 might be a good deal. Be good to yourself, it's worth it.

Do you have a local aftercare LapBand surgeon lined up? Please read my post, "BEFORE GOING TO MEXICO" for further information.

I just got back from my 4th Band-related surgery (actually 6 surgeries if you count the two times they cut me open without putting me to sleep first.) I'm somewhat of an expert at this point, and I learned something while in the hospital that I feel is important to share here. My current surgeon hugely discourages any of us to compare ourselves to other people. He says the problem with the boards is that we can pick up too much bad or useless knowledge that will only make us feel bad about ourselves. Tons of banded people get it set in their minds that they want a certain amount of saline in their bands, for example, some people demand a full cc during their fill appointment. They'll tell him that their friends all have more saline than them, or that they have a band with a larger capacity than most people. But each one of us is different. The way he explained it really sunk in deep. Penni was with me at the time, and we both have the same band. But then I got on Penni's scale and we both weigh exactly the same weight. When you look at Penni and I, we look completely different. I'm way taller than her, and she's got nice big boobs, while I have huge feet next to hers. Even Penni's sweetheart, John, was blown away when I told him that Penni and I weigh exactly the same. The point our surgeon slammed home was for us to stop comparing ourselves to anyone else. A fill level is really only important to the surgeon. Each person is different, each has different DNA, genetic make up, metabolisms, needs, hydration... each and every one of us reacts completely different. And each doctor is different, too. They each have their own plan for filling bands. Some follow Inamed's recommendation of giving small fills to gradually "sneak up" on restriction. Other doctors give aggressive fills to make restriction really tight. He just shook his head at the sillyness of the "sweet spot" that every talks about because there is really no such thing. Some people feel they reached the sweet spot because they are able to eat and stop eating after they are full. But that is not the band, or the sweet spot, doing the work. It's the person, who has learned what the correct band portions are for their specific needs. He sent me and Penni home with homework to do, which we are posting on a separate thread, and this was sort of part of the homework. We are not allowed to compare ourselves to others, which is why I thought this might be a good place to share this newfound information. Now I gotta do my homework - uggh... it involves taking responsiblity for what I put in my mouth! As if I didn't know, but sometimes we gotta be reminded that the band is only a tool, and the band will only work if we work the band!

Becky, please let me know what your doc says about ulcers leading to erosion. I'm almost sure that I've seen warnings about ulcers on several occasions. Billy asked and answered so many questions that I'm overwhelmed with information. Plus, I had quite a bit of anesthesia, morhphine and pain meds in me that a lot is still fuzzy. Thanks to everyone for being here. I really do have big alligator tears running down my cheeks right now. I have not seen the wound. It is too disturbing to me. Every time I think about it, I get goose bumps and queazy. My friend will be here this afternoon to do her first unpacking and repacking. I wish I had half the stomach as her. By the way, I have made my own diagnosis as to how my ulcer-type-bruise got inside my stomach. I might be wrong, but it occurred to me that I often take pills dry. I often forget to take my meds, so I just swallow and run out the door. It's really important that drugs don't sit inside the pouch or stomach like that. So from now on, I'll be sure to wash them down with a lot of Water.

I just had another port-removal surgery that left a huge cavern-of-a-hole in me. If you look into the hole, you can probably see the band from the inside! Totally gross.

I snuck on John's computer but he needs it back... but quickly, Billy was pleased with the wound after removing 6 feet of packed gauze. I'll write more later. By the way, he told me to avoid aspirin as well, because plain ol' aspirin is also a stomach irritant. He said we need to stick with Tylenol. Will write later, thanks again!

As you can see, I'm severely allergic to tape/bandages, so Penni got really creative this morning with paper tape. Here's a close up that shows the entire area - most of the red is from allergic rash from the bandages.

FOR THE STRONG ONLY... GROSS PICTURES ATTACHED OF MY NEW OPEN SURGICAL WOUND. Darcy, this one's for you. My wound was left open intentionally. It is packed with several feet of gauze that is packed way into the gap that was left behind from the port. Billy will remove the packing today and replace it with several feet of fresh gauze, and my friend back home will unpack and repack the wound every day. The object is for it to heal from the inside, out. So, hopefully the inches of gauze will get a tad smaller every day. Dr. Billy opened the port incision to clean it and to remove the port. He also made small slits in 2 of my original wounds (you can see bits of white Steri-Strips) to insert the camera for the laporscopy (sp?) and he made one brand new incision... can you find it? Nope, cuz he was nice enough to hide it inside my belly button, so when it heals it will be completely concealed. Get your barf bags... Darcy, enjoy. Photographs by NPM (Nurse Penni Money)

Megan, I killed Penni, she's exhausted so I gotta get off their puter so we can all sleep. But warning, you've opened a huge can of worms asking about our homework. We will each reply tomorrow. Get out your reading glasses. Peace, baby! P.S. Have a Number 2 pencil and a spiral notebook handy... college ruled.

I'm having Penni post some stuff for me cuz it's hard mustering up the courage to talk about my situation. Penni is amazing. Lord knows how or why the girl puts up with me, but she's treated me better than anyone ever has. She had a romantic weekend planned with John, but they insisted on cancelling to take care of me instead. My brother and sister live nearby and could have taken me, but Penni insisted. And, it's JOHN's BIRTHDAY today, but instead of celebrating they spent the day caring for me. I even bruised the heck out of Penni's hand cuz she made me squeeze it when they couldn't find a vein for the IV (they stuck me lots of times in 3 places.) Through all the pain and emotion (and let me tell you, my last pain was nothing compared to this), Penni somehow made it a fun and damn silly time. I'd try to cry but she'd make me laugh. She tried to stay with me all day, but my surgery was delayed 6 hours so I made her go home. Before she left, she went to the gift shop and bought me plushie stuffed animals just like Voodoo and Sachi (my fur babies) to keep me company. But she showed up right before I went into OR, and Dr. Billy was kind enough to let her stay in the surgery room till the last minute. She sent "a driver" to pick me up at the airport, so a guy in a suit was holding up a card with my name when I landed. She's driven me back and forth to the hospital twice and is taking me there and back tomorrow, an hour each way. She bought me bandages and is changing my dressing (sorry, Darcy.) Michelle is right, there are really angels among us. Thank you everyone for the nice words to Nurse Penni Money. And Vera, Penni let me hear the message you left her, and we both cried together. Boy, I better make a deposit into the good kharma bank real soon. Anyone need a favor or 97?

First, Penni is not my friend, she's my sister. All the nurses in the hospital figured we were sisters, so we just went along with it. I'm not home in my own bed, I'm at Penni's house in California, so Chris can't take care of me. But the poor guy has called and is sitting at home stewing and fretting wondering how I am. He thinks I'm coming home tomorrow, but I have to stay an extra day so Billy can check my wound tomorrow. Darcy, this one's for you - it's a 3 inch long gaping wound packed with gauzed, and they did not sew it shut. Nice n' gross. Penni will take a picture of it tomorrow cuz she's really gross, too. Billy insisted that I look at it because I need to monitor it, but I didn't do so well and almost passed out while Penni stared right at it. My friend, Gross Mary, home in Vegas will be responsible for changing my dressings. GROSS.

I just lost my new port. Dr. Billy took it from me. This just in: IF YOU HAVE A LEAKING, WEEPING WOUND THAT WON'T CLOSE, THIS IS A BAD THING. The surgery I had two weeks ago in Mexico has been undone. The "mystery fluid" that has been oozing out of me for 8 months was infected (this time cultures were done.) It wasn't rejection, it was infection. It baffles me that not one of the other docs I've seen since May were interested enough to do a culture. Disturbing. No matter how deep they clean an infected wound, some bacteria will stay behind. When Lopez passed the brand new port through the old wound, the new port became surrounded by infectious bacteria. Also, even though my port was placed away from the incision, he left part of the long tube laying across the infected area under the surface of the incision. Dr. Billy has identical cases, and a wound simply will not close when the tube has bacteria and is so close to the surface. Maybe I'm not explaining this exactly, but gimme a break cuz drugs have me, well, drugged. With the last surgery, Dr. Lopez said an endoscopy wasn't necessary at that moment, but he would watch my progress and do one down the road, either in a couple weeks or later depending on how I was doing. Let this be a lesson to all of us that we have to be aggressive in our own care because I'm sure if I tried harder, Lopez would have done the scope for me. The reason the scope was so important is that Dr. Billy found the beginnings of an ulcer in my stomach, and we have all heard that ulcers can lead to erosion. So, if I kept waiting for time to pass, the ulcer could have gotten much bigger. Billy was fab, I mean it. He reinforced the importance of not taking NSAIDs, which can cause ulcers, and he prescribed 6 months of Pepcid to hopefully cure the ulcer-looking-thing. It's not a true ulcer yet, but it's the beginning, and only the Angels know how long before it became a monster. Penni is just now telling me that Billy also found some plastic sutures that were left inside me, but he didn't know why they were still in there. Yes, Billy is all they say he is and much much more. He spent all morning with me, sitting by my side with Penni answering so many questions and counseling us both on getting back to Band basics... he even gave us homework that we are not looking forward to doing. However, he is right, that if we want our Bands to work, we have to work our Bands. To top it off, he threw in a laparoscopy (sp?) which meant he opened 2 of my old incisions plus made a tiny new one in my belly button to look inside my stomach with a camera. He covered me from all angles, and I made a complete ass out of myself upon awakening in the recovery room. According to Dr. Billy, I was hugging everyone in the room and I begged for asthma medicine, even though I'm not asthmatic. He had me and Penni in absolute stitches. Kind, caring, knowledgeable, experienced, and not too hard on the eyes, ahem! As far as Lopez goes, even Billy agrees he's an excellent surgeon. However, Mexico doesn't carry the same accountabily that US doctors are forced to face due to litigation proceedings. I still have a lot of respect for Lopez because he did what doctors do... he "practiced" medicine, and since there is no exact science, he followed his standards of practice. If you don't read anything else, please read this. I have an entire new outlook on getting surgery in Mexico. If you do not have a doctor lined up for aftercare, do NOT get a band in Mexico. Get your ducks in a row first. Don't rely on what people tell you, but instead call and speak directly to a local Band surgeon to ensure you are taken well care of throughout your entire journey. Peace.

Poor Penni, I was having trouble swallowing (FOOD, duh) but I was too sick to get to my puter so I asked Penni to post whether anyone else has problems swallowing. The big dork didn't even catch her typo so the title came out looking really bad, and she never finished writing the body of the post cuz she had to get me to the hospital. When she saw all the responses she was so, so embarrassed, but she ended up not deleting it because I was doing really bad and was really depressed, so she read the posts to me in my hospital bed, and I nearly died laughing. You guys are nuts! I can't believe you naughty girls! But thanks for getting me out of that funk... and yes, I was in the hospital - I'll post those details later. Love you guys, you slay me.

I hear ya, Leatha. I'm not here looking for answers, I just need to vent. Monday she came in my office and offered me an OJ and a McGriddle sandwich with a bite taken out of it. She ordered 2 meals for herself but wasn't feeling well so tried giving me the rest of the 2nd meal. Yes, after all the screaming at her, she still brings plates of food in my office. I told her that ordering 2 meals is a lot of food, but she said she orders 2 cause it holds her over till dinner, but then I see her sneak out to lunch and bring leftovers back. This time I took the OJ cuz I love OJ, but no, I didn't take her used sandwich. Just glad I can vent here.

No, that sounds weird! But you are much teenier than me. I can barely feel my ribs!