aubrie

Now this is really scaring me. I take a baby aspirin daily for my heart. My cardiologist, told me that now, whatever I do, DON'T stop taking the baby aspirin once I start as it can be DANGEROUS. So once I'm banded, what the heck do I do?

Kimmom, I just got back from a two week vacation in Maine last month. I AM HOOKED!! I fell in love with the place. We stayed on Mt. Desert Island. It was heaven. Can't say how I would react to the winters, but the spring was glorious. The people were awesome. The lobster was a real treat for me. The houses and little villages were like I stepped into a story book. We went sailing three times and I can't remember the last time I was so relaxed and happy.

My doc told me the same thing as well. I won't have any problem giving up my fizzy soft drinks, but in the heat of the summer, I sure will miss an ice cold beer!!! that's going to be tough.

So how exactly does your body know it can't be broken down or pushed through and does the PB thing? How fast does the food go through the band? 5 minutes? 20 minutes? and hour? When do you PB? Immediately or after it sits there a while and doesn't move? Sorry for all these questions, but it's a mystery to me. When you PB, is it like a gentle blob just oozing up and out or is it like projectile vomiting?

I just read that there is no stomach acid in the pouch. How can that be? It's part of our stomach. How does the food degrade to get into the stomach? If the point of the pouch is to slow down the food getting there so you stay full longer, it HAS to break down at some point to get through the band. We can't drink water to flush it down, so how exactly does that work????? :paranoid I'm totally confused.

Oh yeah.....Dr. Chang's Corpus Office is at Bay Area Hospital.

I'm in Corpus Christi and I am using Dr. Craig Chang. What a honey!!! He's with the Citizens group out of Victoria and comes highly recommended. So does his associate Dr. McDaniels. I will have my surgery in Victoria, but they have an office in Corpus for office visits, follow ups and fills. They also have group meetings and seminars here.That was convenient for me. I don't mind the 2 hour drive for surgery, as long as there is a satellite office here. My best friend switched from Dr. Speigal in Houston to Dr. Chang. Speigal botched her band. She recently had emergency surgery as a result, but Chang saved her band! It's made a WORLD of difference for her.

I don't do well with vitamins. Most of them make me very nauseous. I found a brand at the health food store that I have taken in the past, it makes me feel great, and I don't get sick, but they are HUGE and you have to take three a day. Now I'm concerned. How many of you take liquid vitamins? My doc says that when he does my band, he will require me to chew flintstones vitamins!! I busted out laughing. I thought he was kidding me!!

I too have Aetna, and they are covering my surgery, but believe me I had to dance through hoops for six months to get it done. Sleep studies, nutritionists that tried to talk me out of it, 6 months on a diet with my general practitioner, which I've done a million times and cried when I found out I had to do again, cardiac tests, rhuematologists, etc., etc. It's been a nightmare, but I'm almost done. Just have some group sessions to attend and a psych evaluation, then I'm ready!!

Not banded yet, but all this sounds a lot like the way I felt after a hysterechtomy with the pillow and all. I couldn't sit up, roll over, cough, sneeze. It was awful and very sore. I guess I could compare it to that?

I have a choice of two psych doctors in my area. One says the appointment is $150 and it's $150 to have the records sent to my doctor. She files on insurance, so my co-pay will apply. Fine. The other doc says it's a flat $300 for the visit, his report to me and my doctor and a feedback session with his findings afterwards. He does not file on insurance, but will give me the forms to file myself. I was asking the 2nd doctor a lot of questions and he inquired why. I told him that the other doctor was wanting to charge a $150 fee to send my records. He basically told me that charging for records was actually a HIPPA violation, and that if I pressed it, I could get the records sent with no fee if I brought that to their attention. Do any of you out there have medical records background that can confirm this?

I'm not afraid of being thin, becuase I WAS thin once and know what it feels like. Matter of fact, I have a hard time accepting that I am as big as I am. It doesn't register until I see a photo of myself. The thing I'm afraid of at age 48, is that it's been since age 31 that I was a normal weight. I have it in my mind in some warped way, that I'll be 31 again if I lose weight. I know that sounds totally stupid. I'm afraid of aging dramatically. (Whew, what vanity does to the mind...) I had a girlfriend in her late 30's who lost about 70 pounds very quickly. Her face sagged and was so wrinkled that she looked like she was 60 years old. It was horrible. She couldn't deal with it, and gained most of her weight back to fill her cheeks out again. She would rather be fat and youthful than thin and old looking. It was wierd. I was close to her at the time, and this really had an effect on me. So I'm scared of that.

lizrbit, I absolutely fell in love with Maine. I went with no expectations, and came back a number one fan. It was definately one of my better vacations. I envy you living there. I live in Corpus Christi and it's SO HOT. I'm glad you could relate to the list. I think of new things all the time. I'm looking so forward to this. Looks like you were rebanded while I was in Maine. We just traded places! Keep up the good work!

Mandilou, I had to smile when I read about not wearing shorts because they bunch up and you have to do the 'leg roll' to get them to go down after 5 steps. GOD I HATE THAT!!! Thank you for sharing. It was wonderful and well said.

I have done some research, and drinking or eating a food with an artificial sweetner is doing to your body the same as sugar. As soon as the sweetner hits your toungue, your brain registers that you ate something sweet, regardless if it has calories or not, and you still get an insulin dump. Your body behaves just like if you ate sugar. You're basically tricking your body and messing with the natural chemical reactions. I've also read that some sweetners actually turn to something similar to formaldyhide in the blood. that sounds just awful to me. If OB/GYNs are now warning against it due to birth defects, then it's not for me either. I can't stand the headache I get. I just drink good ole fashioned water, and go ahead with a very occasional sweet treat.

get a pad and paper and sit at this site and read, read, read. then list the questions as they come up. Half you'll mark off the list because the folks on this board will end up answering some of them. and remember. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A DUMB QUESTION. If it concerns you, it's valid.

Prairie Lover, I also HATE to sweat and do it all the time for next to nothing. Our house is like a meat locker. (poor family) When I'm hot, which is most of the time, I'm a B%^*$. I had to laugh when I read the thread titled "I'm freezing and fed up". It's on the general lap band discussion section. Many people say after surgery they are cold all the time. In my book, that could be something to look forward to! LOL I'm much more pleasant when it's cold. Matter of fact, we vacationed in Maine this year and Alaska last year. the thought of going tropical and being sweaty and miserable and swollen just doesn't do it for me. Maybe after banding I'll be more flexible on this.....

faithmd, We just got back from vacation on Mt. Desert Island in Maine. There were kayakers everywhere having a marvelous time. We went to Alaska last year and the same thing. I just got to sit on the shore and watch. I'm sick of sitting on the sidelines and watching life go by. I WANT TO BE A PARTICIPANT!! hang in there. Kayaking on that river is just around the corner for you. Don't lose your focus.

I haven't done it yet. My best friend (who is banded) and my husband and sons know I plan on doing it. None of them seem to have an issue about it at all. I don't think they really understand what it is. I told my mother and sister and my mother freaked out. She was absolutely terrified. I have since told her I changed my mind just to put her mind at ease, and will not tell her until I've lost a significant amount of weight and have to choice but to explain how. My sister was positive, but worried about side effects and complications. She works at a large hospital in Dallas and sees a lot of stuff, so she's worried, but not opposed. My regular doctor who recommended it, and all his nurses and staff are like a cheerleading team for me. Other than that, it's nobody's business.

Lotsacurves, I can relate to giving up on exercise. I too, hurt like hell when I attemt to do anything. Even walking from one end of the mall to the other hurts my knees. When I was much younger, I was an aerobic fiend. I pray that I lose enough to make me comfortable and enjoy that again. I also used to love to dance. Now the pool is the only thing I can do and not grimmace. I'll start with that and work my way up. Baby steps. One day at a time.

I get REALLY grouchy when I'm hot. Matter of fact, in the summer, my two sons will warn my husband when he gets home if I'm hot and irritable. If I'm cold, I'm usually perky and happy. This would be a positive thing for me, my kids and my husband! I guess if an attitude adjustment comes with banding it's a win win situation all the way around. They will be so happy!!!

You guys are cracking me up!!!

I'm not banded yet. will be soon. I'm so freaking hot all the time, washing the dishes over a hot sink has me dripping in sweat. Being cold almost sounds heavenly. I have to keep the house like a meat locker at night so I can sleep. At least after banding I'll save on electricity!!!

LOL at hopefull loser. that was definately my giggle for the day.

Many surgeons have different rules and regs. For example. Many of the members talk about weeks of pre-op liquid diets. My surgeon, after our first meeting, said he only requires three days. they are all different so ask anyway. the cost of fills after your year of post-op care is up. I've seen everything from $50 to $375. Definately a consideration. My surgeon will go through my belly button to reduce the number of scars. Some don't. I'd make a list regardless so you know what to expect.