pati-o

Here's my pitiful list: !. I can swallow a whole piece of cooked spaghetti and then pull it back out. (Ick, I know!) 2. I can pee standing up. Again, Ick! I know.... I went to too many parties that didn't have bathrooms when I was a young adult. The things one will do when they're drunk! 3. I've driven more brand spankin' NEW cars then anyone I know. (My parents owned a ford Dealership and I learned to drive at 9 yrs old) 4. I can spit, let it drop and almost hit the floor and pull it back in. Ick again right? 5. I can wiggle the tip of my nose side to side. Oh God, my list is getting grosser, but hey, I kinda like the Samantha from Bewitched thing. 6. I can make my lips look like a horses. Yes, I have no talents. 7. On a brighter note..... I have the uterus made by michelin. I could carry quadruplets 3 weeks past their due date and still end up having to be induced! 8. I'm the only person in the world who would sell her husband for one kiss from Darius Rucker! gotta LOVE that man!

Dr.Mark Pleatman in Bloomfield Hills,MI. does fills for Pts. banded outside of the U.S. I have had two fills total, he did both of them. His office staff are great, he's very nice and very professional. (I wish I had him place my band!!)

Kathy and Ann Marie, I showed these films to my endo dr. Kathy, you are right, the narrow area is the gastro-esophageal valve/junction. He said the pouch looked perfect and so did the band. He said that he thought I wasted my money by having this test, but I'm glad I did it anyway, because now I know. My nurse practitioner put me on another 30days of nexium along with zantac 150mg twice a day and I feel like a new woman. NO REFLUX at all anymore. I am able to eat again without any problems. Dr. Pleatman was out of town, but his office was so nice and called me to check on me to make sure I was ok. Everyone has been great, thank you all for your advice and for giving me input.

thank you everyone for replying. I feel better since you've all looked at my xrays and given me input. I can't believe how weird my band has been this weekend, I was able to eat- different stuff. Potatoes, pork and green beans for dinner with zero discomfort. I took it easy all weekend until tonight. I'm wondering if I was super swollen. But I still am afraid that this band has slipped. I'm calling for my appt. with the Dr. first thing in the morning. thanks!

thanks wheetsin for putting the pics on there:) Anwyn, I am in Michigan- I was banded in Mexico, so 99% of all Drs. treat me like I have the plague and wont touch me. I have regrets about not checking further into local Drs in the first place. too late now. I am definately too tight, the top picture shows the barium sitting above my band and not going through. It took a full 60 seconds before it started really going through. I really, really hope that this is all it is. I'm scared to death that it has slipped. What I don't understand is how it suddenly got this tight, I haven't had a fill since july. I did however have dry, stringy ribs and olives with thick chewy skins on new years eve, and it's gone downhill since then. Time will tell. The crappy thing about all of this- I work in a surgical unit. I saw at least 15 surgeons yesterday and I knew that not one of them could do a darn thing to help me..... so frustrating.

My fill Dr. is out of town until May 1st. I emailed Dr. Kuris coordinator, these are my upper gi pictures from this morning, I have constant burning in my throat, and weird chest pain. Any advice?? thanks,pati [ATTACH][ATTACH][/ATTACH][/ATTACH]

I desperately need help to learn how to put photos on posts- I have barium swallow pictures that I need to post for advice. thanks , pati

My mom has been on Byetta since October and has lost 40+ lbs. She has type 2 diabetes. It makes her so queasy that nothing looks appealing to her, she barely eats. It's working for her diabetes and weight loss, but I don't know how she can walk around all day and feel so ill:(

HI, I was having the same problems. I had an endo last monday which showed esophageal erosion, esophagitis, gastritis and vocal cord irritation and inflammation. I saw the Dr who did my endo yesterday, he has me on Nexium 40mg twice a day. HOLY COW! does that stuff help. He told me that I am just someone who produces too much acid, and that my band is not the culprit. My endo Dr. consulted with a band Dr for advice before he saw me for a follow up. I'd ask for an endo. it's better to look have someone look directly at the area that is giving you problems and get a definate answer then to speculate and try to guess what the problem is. I tried gaviscon, prevacid,pepcid, maalox,tums, rolaids, you name it, nothing worked. I was worried constantly that something was terribly wrong with my band-now I know and have a huge sense of relief.

Thank you everyone:) I don't really know what all of these problems are from. Since I work in the dept. where I had the scope, I was able to talk to the girls that were in the room and saw the test as it was being performed. They told me that the bottom of my stomach was very irritated with areas of inflammation, and that my esophagus looked "raw". The biopsy results came back and I do not have Barretts (a permanant change in the type of cells that line the esophagus as far as I understand. people with Barretts have a higher chance of developing esophageal cancer, so they are watched very closely with scopes every year). The Dr. who did my test is not a band Dr. just a general surgeon, but I am very comfortable with him, he is even willing to do fills and unfills, but only if it is absolutely necessary. I go back to the dr. on the 31st to discuss my results (even though I know what the pathology results are-thanks to having the right "connections" I am anxoius to see what he has to say. I may be heading off to see Dr. Pleatman for a little unfill, since I've felt that this fill may have been a tad bit too tight since I got it last july. thanks again!

I had an endo today. I have some heartburn at night, not much, and I thought it was caused by my tylenol PM. The endo showed gastritis, esophagitis, esophageal erosion and inflammed and irritated vocal cords. I am now on Nexium 40mg twice a day and have to get another endo in 1 month. The good news, my band looks good. THank god!!

Here are my thoughts- however simplistic they may seem. After reading your post, it appears to me that (pre-banding) you had your life mapped out. Live until your fourties, then die. Now that you've lost the weight and can't sabotage yourself in the quest for being thin, you have NO idea what to do with your life. You're most likely NOT going to die in your 40's, so that's shot to hell. You aren't going to reach your goal then make a 180 and gain it all back. Seems to me that you're just unsure of how to really LIVE. It also seems that you've always looked at weight loss as a sure failure. Not so this time around. I understand the restlessness....Not only do I feel that I can no longer be obsessed with being HUGE, I'm sending my baby off to school this fall and have to start another chapter in my life that doesn't involve little kids at home. One thing is for sure, the possibilities are endless if we're willing to take the time to explore them. Pati

Last year while vacationing with some friends whos children are VERY well behaved, my friend and I were sitting on the sofa in our hotel room chatting and catching each other up on the past couple of years when my three year old walks up to my friend and uses one nostril as a gun to shoot a cocoa puff directly at her... How horrifying! Oh and I work in a hospital in an Outpatient/endo dept. We've been called in to remove MANY different things. Christmas ornaments, aerosol cans, a vase once, and the latest- the little metal top thingie from a lava lamp. SICK people!

oh God, I WAS trying to avoid this site but I just HAVE to add my two cents of info. I don't know where you're all from, but here in Michigan we call the FUPA a "fat rabbit" don't know why. Oh and at our house my hubby calls his Johnson his "stick" and by sons call theirs "Mr. Peepers". My daugters call all girl pieces/parts the "tootie" . Mine is a hoo-ha also. SO, if you're all lucky tonight and get a doo-da in your hoo-ha, then consider it a great night. (that's when the "O" fairy comes to visit!~) Glad there are some others like me out there.....don't know what that means exactly, but I'm glad just the same!!! Oh, and Lisa..... do the ben wa balls work???????? What happens if you lose one???

Cheryl, You may want to check into Dr Pleatmans costs. He has a package price that includes fills and followups for 2 years post-op and the package is a GREAT price. I have had him do all of my fills, I think he is a very skilled Dr. and he and his office are great to work with. I went to Dr Kuri, have had no problems, but when I add the cost for his surgery,airfare and follow ups that I've already had with Dr Pleatman, the package deal price with Dr. P is much, much better. Oh, and I'm from Michigan, near Kazoo. I'm 13 monthes out and have lost 58lbs. I can't say enough good things about the way I feel now. No more aches and pains and I love how I look now. Pati