MaLiyah30

I had a really good experience. I'm not sure about the "awful feeling" you are talking about but I will describe my experience to you. Right after surgery I remember the nurse kind of prancing about the room talking about how nice it is outside. Still half asleep, I asked her if she was talking to me and she laughed and said yes. She said I was talking to her but I certainly don't remember:) They used a plastic blow up thing that blows out warm heat (I don't know what its called) and it warmed me up right away. I couldn't stop shaking so the nurse put something in my iv to help me stop shivering. Basically they gave me ice chips and told me I could take a shower the same day because they used glue on my incisions. About an hour after I woke up, I was going home. I was given my meds prescription 1 week before surgery so I already had them at home. Best wishes to you and yours!!!!!!!!!!

Same here! I was on my period during my surgery and I told the nurse but she said it didn't matter. I had on a tampon. She said the surgery would last at the most 1 hour and 30 min assuming there were no complications. He was done in about 65 mins. Don't worry:) Everything will be fine. Best wishes to you and yours!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wheetsin you totally rock!!!!!!!!!!!!! I remember everything you mentioned. OMG I felt like I was in elementary and middle school:)

Thats interesting. My bmi was 35.4 and my doc. told me that I didn't have to do a liquid diet. I guess every doctor is different. Good luck and best wishes to you!!!!!!!!!!!

I have had a lot of gas problems and I have learned that I have IBS and I am super sensitive to artificial sweeteners. My oh my! I was so swollen that I couldn't even hold in my stomach. Since learning that I can't tolerate any form of artificial sweeteners I have only drank water and my problems have gone away.

I hear you Fairy!!!!!!!!!! I am seriously lacking in the hips and the ass as well. I look best in jeans that have flaps on the rear pockets. They make me look like I have some serious booty! You look great by the way:)

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I am an apple shape as well and I find that fitted boycut bottoms only makes my narrow hips and thighs look even smaller. I have tried on several pair. If you are anything like me then you probably have really nice legs so don't be afraid to show them off. I like tankinis and they look great on most people. If you must wear shorts of some sort outside of the pool I would opt for one with a slightly loose fit instead. I would also suggest getting a longer cut top because most apple shaped women do not look well in tops that stop at the waist. It tends to make the waist look thicker. I like to wear a cute cami with a light weight shirt over it because it hides the my love handles. Also like Kat 817 mentioned A lined dresses look great on almost anyone and it helps to give you a waist. Don't forget the cute shoes and accesories and enjoy yourself!!!!!!!!!! Try this website: Waist Minimizer

I have always been able to view the before and after pics up until yesterday. I checked all of my settings to no avail. The funny thing is I am still able to look at scar pictures but not the before and after pictures. It is saying that internet explorer cannot display the webpage. Can someone please help?

Yes I am still having trouble viewing the pictures. I will check again tomorrow. I am now getting something that says HTTP 500 the website cannot display the page. Most likely causes are: The website is under maintenance or the website has programming errors. Its strange because I looked at the pictures everyday up until a few days ago. Thanks for responding.

I was banded in Dec of 07. Before I was banded I asked the doctor what kind of band was he going to use. He said I would be getting the APS band which is the newest band that he was now using. After surgery he gave me a card but I didn't look at it until I was at home. My card said that my band can only hold approx. 4 cc's of saline. I was totally confused. Today I went for my 3rd fill. He already had saline in the syringe so when he inserted the needle he pulled out some saline along with what was in the syringe. I heard him tell the nurse it was a total of 6. I'm not sure if he was talking about cc's or what. If it is a total of 6 cc's then how can I possibly have the band that holds only 4cc's. I have been banded for almost 3 months and lost 11lbs but gained it all back. So now I am back to square 1. I am 5'7 and weight 224 lbs. Getting discouraged!!!!!!!!!!

I didn't tell anyone about my surgery except my mom and I am self-pay as well. I asked my doctor about FMLA (family medical leave act) and he filled out the papers for me to turn into my company. The papers simply stated that I was having surgery (no specific type) and would need to be off from work for 2 weeks and upon returning could not lift anything over 5lbs for 4 weeks. If you have FMLA and your company employs 50 employees or more then legally they can't deny you time off from work regardless of whom is on vacation. It is the law. Even if it is elective, the surgery is to improve your overall health which is why I was able to get FMLA. I was given 2 weeks off from work. Please speak with your doctor about it and I'm sure he or she will fill out the necessary papers for you to have the required time off from work. I hope this helps and good luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was self pay and my BMI was 35.6. I was banded 4 weeks after my initial consultation and my BMI went down to 35.4. I did not have to do a pre-op diet which was cool. Best wishes to you!!!!!

I think I know the answer to your question. From my understanding you can claim 7.5% for the surgery. For example, if you made 30,000 than 7.5% of that would be 2,250. If your surgery is 15,000, subtract 2,250 from 15,000 to get a total of 12,750. The total of 12,750 is what you can claim as a deduction on your taxes. I hope that I explained it correctly. You can check the IRS website to find information there as well. Cheers to you and yours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh please, do it do it do it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I too have a job that requires a lot of lifting and moving across a facility that is the size of 3 football fields. I asked in advance if he would fill out the papers for me to have FMLA and he smiled and said gladly! He signed for me to have 3 weeks off for recovery and 3 weeks of restriction meaning I couldn't lift anything over 20lbs upon returning to work. I can honestly say that I really did need the 2 weeks off. By the middle of the third week I felt a lot better. I was so weak at times I thought I was going to pass out. I wasn't hungry so I was consuming very little and not enough protein. Best wishes to you and yours!!!!!!!

I was banded on 12/26/07 and I was told to take bp medication on the morning of surgery. I have type II diabetes but I was instructed not to take it. They usually want your stomach empty to prevent vomiting before surgery (your doctor will give you instructions to follow before surgery). I didn't take any more medication until day 3. I wasn't specifically told not too but I just didn't want to. My diabetes medication is HUGE so I called the pharmacy and was told it was ok to crush it. My blood pressure medication however can't be crushed. It is very small so I had no problems with it. As far as Vitamins I have always taken 2 flinstone vitamins since I was a kid. They have many different chewables and liquids so you should shop around and find whatever is to your liking. More than likely the doctor doing your surgery will have chewables available for purchase in their office. Please check with your pharmacist to be sure your medication can be crushed or cut in half. It will greatly affect the dosage and may have a negative effect on your body. Generally if it has a line through the middle it can be crushed or halved. If it is time released it absolutely can not be crushed. Good luck with your surgery!!!!!!!!!!! Best wishes to you and yours!!!!!!!!

Like you, I too have often thought about what my goal weight should be. I am 5'7 and I on the day of my surgery (12/26/07) I weighed 226 lbs. I set my goal weight at 145-150. My Doc said that was an excellent goal weight for me. He said many patients don't set their goal weight to put them at a healthy bmi range. My mom is 5'6 and she weighs 150. She looks awesome!!!!!! Please do what makes you comfortable and happy. I'm sure you will look amazing. Best wishes to you and yours!

I didn't tell anyone except my mother. Honestly, I didn't want to tell her because I knew she would drive me crazy saying things like you really don't need surgery and why not do what you were doing before (exercising 2 hrs. a day ) and my personal favorite, "Oh honey I think you feel warm. Do you feel okay?" The only reason I told her was because I needed her to drive me there and bring me back home. I feel that telling people is a very personal decision so please consider before telling people. Once you say it you can't take it back. Once you tell people they will watch you like a hawk and keep track of your progress good or bad. I have enough on my plate from friends and a stressfull job so I had no intentions of adding more stress. Best wishes to you and yours!

Hello to all!!!! I am 31 and tomorrow is my birthday. I was banded on Dec. 26, 2007. So far I am doing great! I'm not exactly sure how much weight I have lost. I didn't want to know. The Doc. said I was doing good. I left it at that. I can't wait to talk with some of you. Best wishes to you and yours!

I didn't have to lose weight due to a low bmi. I started out at 35.6 at the initial consultation but when I went back for the pre-op visit I had dropped to 34.8. I was banded on 12-26 and at my one week follow up visit I had lost 14 lbs. I was afraid he wouldn't do the surgery because my bmi had dropped. I guess it was because I have always had a history of going up and down in terms of my weight. Best wishes to you and yours!

OMG I was banded on the 26th and the same thing happened to me yesterday! I hope it doesn't happen too often.

Hello to all! I am new here and have found a lot of valuable information on this site. I am nervous and excited about my date. It all happened so fast. I work on average about 60 hours a week so I haven't had a lot of time to think about the pain or gas or the things I won't be able to eat. I guess that is a good thing though. I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!!!

Like you I carry all of my weight around my middle as well. My BMI is around 35.4. The last time I visited my Dr. I had lost 2 lbs. I wasn't trying to. I work in a busy setting and I am on my feet walking about 6 out of 10 hours a day. I didn't have to do a pre-op diet nor did I have to lose any weight. Best wishes to you and yours!