Penni60

Lisa: First I am sorry your port has flipped. Second, it ain't no thang but a chicken wang. Chicken wing. FOOD!! OOPS got sidetracked. Seriously I had a port revision surgery when mine flipped. It was an outpatient procedure and I walked out of the recovery into the waiting car and slept the whole way home. It was some minor discomfort but NOTHING like the initial surgery. Couple of days of rest and I was good as new. And my port is soooooooo much easier to find now. They even used the original incision for the port placement. That was the only incision they had to make too. Mine was easy as Pie. PIE!! Darnit. Got sidetracked again. Gonna go drink some water. YUM YUM!!

joanie: This gets my dander up. Give me your surgeons number and I will set him straight.

another post bites the dust. This one is locked as well.

Since when do we have to pay to attend a SUPPORT GROUP meeting. Those are volunteer run and from what I understand no one is charged at the one Billy runs. They are FREE. This surgeon is a shister in my book. That is outrageous. It sounds like he is wanting to get paid for what the insurance won't cover on the band by disguising it as his "aftercare program". I would run from this guy. I would also report him to your insurance co and possible the AMA as well. I have ZERO tolerance for these types of doctors now. They are just out for the money and don't seem to want to help the patient. SIGH!! Sorry got on my soapbox there for a minute.

I am not sure about in San Diego exactly but some others on here might make a suggestion. Is your insurance going to cover the procedure? If so then your options are large. I see Dr. Helmuth Billy in Ventura for my follow up. I highly recommend him but I know that is a distance for you. If you chose to go to Mexico since you are so close just chose wisely as they do not have the same set of standards of practice as US surgeons. Doesn't mean that are any less qualified to perform the surgery just means they have different standards. I had mine done in Mexico and was pleased with the surgery but the aftercare was lacking. HOpe this helps.

Lisa: I feel so sorry that you are having such pain from this last surgery. But at least the packing is less. Um,... for all us gross people WHERE IS A PIC??? Get Mary to take one then send it to me and I will post it so you don't gotta see it. LOLOL!!!! I love you guys so much that I am taking time out from my weekend with John to post here. ISn't that true love?? OOPS!! Should be true love to JOhn HMMM!!!! We are in San Simeon on the oceanside. Lovely!!

Erosion can happen a couple different ways. One is how leatha mentioned by the band eroding into the stomach wall from the outside in. Another is from where the stomach lining gets irritated and forms an ulcer then continues to erode from the inside out exposing the band. This can be seen on an endoscopy as a white patch in the stomach lining. The misconception is that the band itself actually erodes and breaksdown. That does NOT happen. The band is simply exposed to stomach acids only after the stomach wall is compromised by an ulcer or other stomach irritants. Hope this has clarified things.

One thing to consider when getting your Operative report is to ask for it in english. Mine is all in spanish and unless your surgeon can read spanish it is worthless. I have mine but it is worthless.

Alex, I was confused about the programs. I have the home version and not the online version as well. I love that you can put the actually contents into the program. The online version you can't, I think that is one of the things he was referring to. Some people won't know that you can and should include every ingredient in what you eat down to the salt and pepper. LOL!! The "50" items were a general comment. He wasn't implying that everyone only eats 50 items he said most times we can only come up with 50 and of that we can only remember on average 10 of those 50. So use that as a general statement and not literal. Tuna is a food item Mayo is separate That is my understanding anyway.

HUBBA HUBBA!! Hard to concentrate when he is looking at you with those eyes and that smile let me tell you. Now you understand!!!

I have two digital cameras. One is a Canon Power shot A70. That is the predominate pics on this website. It cost about $200 to $300. I have a nicer more expensive camera my sweetie got me for christmas. Canon EOS 10D. NICE CAMERA!!! Too expensive for what you want but a NICE camera. DROOLING!!!

Isn't this the cutest pic???

FREEBIES!! Those are always a good thing. I realized I "graze" all day long. I gotta just stock up on fruit and veggies for my grazing. I have to get a trash bag and go around the house and throw away all the high calorie Snacks. I too am on the 1200 calorie diet. I was telling Lisa that I was eating under 1000 when I first was banded. Oh and Alex the Fitday.com software program is a good start to counting the calories but it isn't very accurate and you don't work with the food and see what a serving is and how it all breaks down. So use it as a guideline not an absolute. I was using it as well and I will continue to use it but just adapt it to my needs. I love that you can add a food and then add in the dietary specifics of that food. Pretty cool!!

I live in Southern Calif. Original surgeon was Dr. Lopez in Mexico then have aftercare with Dr. Billy in Ventura, CA. Both are good surgeons. Just make sure you have aftercare set up prior to going to Mexico.

POR NADA!!!

WHEW!! Ducking from Donali LOL!!! I see your point about the losing 40 lbs prior to surgery and understand your way of thinking. Billy was using a patient of his as an example of why he requires them to lose prior to surgery. He has a 400 + lb patient that was in the hospital for testing or something. When Billy visits him he sees candy bar wrappers and 4 empty pizza boxes in his room. This tells Billy that this patient is not stable enough to be considered for the lapband certainly and maybe not for the bypass either. The patient in order to be serious about wanting this change has to prove that they can at least follow a regime of cutting back on the food intake. This guy wasn't even trying. That is really all Billy wants his patients to prove to him is that they are trying and willing to make the change.

Hey, Peg leg: You were banded the day after me. OK the comparison thingy mentioned in the Homework thread comes into play now. Banded 1 day apart. I weighed 6 lbs more at the beginning. Peg lost 100lbs I have lost 56lbs. Everyone is different. STOP comparing yourselves guys.

LapBandTalk.com - Lap Band Talk Forum - Before and After Pictures There ya go

I agree 100% to get your aftercare lined up prior to being banded in Mexico unless you intend on going back there for fills and you feel comfortable going there in case of an emergency. This thread is not meant to slam any surgeon in either country. IT is simply a wakeup call to those that are considering being banded out of the US to consider what you would do for fill and emergent situations. Just be proactive in your aftercare. That's all.

There ya go Blossom!! LapBandTalk.com - Lap Band Talk Forum - Dr. Billy HOMEWORK - Have pad, pencil, and humor ready

When your sister eroded how long did the surgeons wait to put the next band on? I am truly concerned about your sister's health. Weight loss right now is not at the forefront. She has had a stroke and not getting proper nutrition to help with the recovery from the stroke isn't a good game plan. Don't make me come over there and kick her butt for you. LOL!!! Please convince her that her life is at stake if she doesn't get the proper care. The salty, metallic taste is certainly a sign of blood. She could be brewing another erosion and a bleeding ulcer. She really needs to be checked out by her band surgeon and or a regular doc if the band surgeon seems disinterested. In all honesty it sounds like she needs to have the band removed and let her body heal some. At the least she needs an unfill. Then go from there. Keep us posted

May there always be work for your hands to do; May your purse always hold a coin or two; May the sun always shine on your windowpane; May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain; May the hand of a friend always be near you; May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you. Bright, someone sent this to me. Is this really an Irish Blessing or were they pulling my leg? But you know even if they were, the sentiment is still there.

You know the first thread was just interpreted the wrong way. IT is all those dirty minds out there and those that don't have a sense of humor that got offended and then deleted the thread. SIGH!! I too was diagnosed prior to my band placement with acid reflux. I have noticed that the more acid creating foods I eat the more burning I have in my stomach. All those people that are experiencing this same thing should talk to your doctor. Acid Reflux is not a good thing to have with a band. It isn't a good thing to have period. Sorry to those that were offended by the previous thread. It was not MY intention to cause such an embarrassing situation that it was necessary for someone to delete the thread. I just wish whoever deleted the thread would have sent me a PM saying did you mean to imply in your post "do you swallow" what is being responded to? I would have done that for someone. Oh well, we live and learn.

Seppi: Cool name by the way. My prayers are with you. Everything happens for a reason. IT will be your turn soon.

Bright and the rest: A fill is very subjective to all bandsters. Oh and that "sweet spot" phenom is a misnomer. After Lisa and I talked at great length with Billy he dispels the "sweet spot" language. No one can tell when they get to a point where a fill is enough. What if you need to have another fill? What you thought was your "sweet spot" wasn't. So from now on I no longer will use that term. In fact there is no term for that because it doesn't exist. Be careful with your fills guys. Think of it as a cup. You can only fill it so many times before it overflows. Yeah you can take more out and put more in but WHY would you do this. I suggest you visit the thread "Dr. Billy Homework" and see some of the suggestions. Bright if you are drinking with your meals that is why you haven't lost anymore. Well it is one reason anyway. Don't get me wrong you might still need a fill but I wouldn't get too aggressive with it. Maybe only a .5cc then work with the band. These are just my thoughts on the subject.