NukeChik

I was self pay and it was 13,800. Of course if you want to get techincal I had to pay the consultation fee of 250 bucks and I also had to pay for the psych evals which were 300 dollars. So I guess my cost was about 14,350. I don't really care, I invested in myself. Also my fee includes a year of followups (they are scheduled, but it is still as many as I need) and fills are 45 bucks a pop. Then after the year my followups are 50 bucks each and fills are 125. So I think that makes my surgeon pretty competitive with the aftercare included in the package. My surgeon is also the leader of a center of excellence, so that made me a little more comfortable. I got the insurance to pay for my pre-op testing by getting my regular doctor to send me for the tests. I had to have several blood tests and an upper gi. For the upper gi my doc just said, "So you have heartburn, right???"

Well its official, I think. Tonight we went out to eat and I think I actually got full. I had about 4 ounces of hamburger steak, some turnip greens and almost all of a muffin. Then all of a sudden there was a feeling like something in my chest. I had a bite of muffin in my mouth, and I just stopped and said oh!? I put that bite of muffin in my napkin and stopped! I did not wanna go too far. I'm just so glad to know now that 1) I can in fact get full and 2) I now get full off of much less food than pre band. I'm just so excited now.:rolleyes2:

I ordered my Unjury a thursday and it was at my house on Monday.

Just make sure that your mocha is less than 130 degrees, otherwise you will get floaties.

I'm sorry that you are feeling down L.A. I can't really relate, I guess I've dealt with it in a different way. I have started an organizational attack on my home. Every day when I go home I organize something. It started with my closet, I organized all my clothes (ranging from size 20-12) in descending order. This is how I have always dealt with what would be called depressing situations, I just keep myself busy so I don't have to think about it. Just know that I'm here for you if you need to vent or anything else!! I have gone through bouts of depression in my life. I've been on several different types of meds. I guess I never figured that the depression was as bad as the side effects of the meds I was taking. Try and feel better in knowing that soon the weight will be dropping off!

I should clarify one thing. The reason why I'm hungry all the time is I haven't had an adjustment yet. If I were you I would research the band (if you haven't already) and see how it works and such. I will have an adjustment on Feb 5 and I shouldn't be as hungry then. Oh and the problem with the seminar. My doc and the others in the area, will not let you even get an appt until you have gone to a seminar. One of the secondary reasons that I got my band was to encourage my father to do it also. I have an aunt that had gastric bypass and has had a very rough time. Watching her struggle with that has definately turned him against a bypass, but I would still like to make an impression on him with my success and hope that he will consider doing it also.

I can't answer your question as in a long term answer, I can just tell you how I feel right now. I had surgery on Jan 7, 2008, so I'm almost 3 weeks out. I feel great. My energy level is much higher than it was pre-surgery, I've lost 20 pounds. I can eat great. I do have to diet, I am hungry most of the time. I'm trying to keep my calories from 1000-1200 per day. Thats plenty to keep your energy up. I even felt good when I was only getting about 400-500 a day though. I think that your father's energy level after surgery is the least of his concerns!

So glad that it was nothing major. I was so worried about you!:redface:

Just wondering if I can get into the Lower BMI Bandsters. I'm down to about a BMI of 34 now. I think I was about 39 when I started this journey. I was banded on January 7. Doin great, get to try regular foods on Monday. I haven't had any problems with anything I've eaten so far.

I'll be thinkin about you Chrisann, sorry you have had such a crummy time!! Let us know what your doc says.

Mia, Let me share a little habit of mine that may be the root of your problems. I noticed quite quickly that when I drink I have a bad habit of inhaling prior to taking the drink. If you do that it will cause you to swallow air and lead to more discomfort. This is what was causing the problem that you are describing (when it happened to me). So when you are drinking something, pay attention. Let the liquid touch your lips before you drink. See if you do it too because its just something that was habit for me and I didn't think about it.

Seajules, That quote is from Henry Ford. I went on a website to get another one he has that is something like Whether you think you can or can't, either way you are right, but I ended up liking the one I've got better. It just sums me up.

I also found that now that I'm eating pretty normal again my incisions are finally healing. I had a lot of concerns about infections in my incisions and holes in my stomach. I was really scared because they just weren't healing (BTW I'm not diabetic). As soon as I started eating fish and my protein shakes and such I"m healing. I'm not losing any weight right now, but I'm okay with that, this is all about being healthy.

I'm glad to see this thread. I don't think that I've been full yet. I have just been eating what I think is a small portion and stopping there. I just wonder how much I would have to eat to get full (don't worry I'm not gonna try it). Sometimes I wonder if I even have a band down there. I haven't experienced any sensations of restriction at all. I'm basically on a diet right now, thats what I would consider it. I'm pretty much hungry all the time. In fact I woke up from surgery hungry!!

The test I took is the MMPI. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. I have to take the same test for my job (every 2 years). The one I take for work is actually a lot longer than the one I took for the lapband eval. Basically my test said that I was subjectively depressed and withdrawn, which my very smart physc chalked up to me being fat.

Everything that I have ever read states that any liquid that doesn't have caffiene in it can be counted into your daily requirements. Caffiene is a diuretic so those can't count.

Mariagg54, Have you had a fill yet? From what I hear its very likely that you will be hungry if you haven't had a fill.

My port pain has calmed down a lot. Its good that you talked to your doc about it. I am just over 2 weeks out BTW. Last week I would start hurting if I did too much. If I started hurting I just stopped whatever I was doing. I wouldn't recommend continuing through the pain. It will get better. I would recommend putting some pressure on it for sneezes though, OMG!!!:rolleyes2:

My doctor has me on Flinstones. I take 2 a day. I ordered the

So glad to hear you are doing better saleel. I will be 2 weeks out tomorrow and almost all my port pain is gone. I'm still gassy, but I don't know if thats the surgery or just my normal self:ohmy:

Just a word about Nauzene. The last time I had a migraine I took it. Just wanted to let you know that the active ingredients for it are sugars. It worked so so for me. I'm just sure that it is loaded with calories. Like that really matters when you're sick :biggrin:, but just thought I would say it since I have actually taken it.

Mama, I just wanted to lend some support. I lost 16 pounds my first week, I haven't lost any this week, but I haven't gained either. I'm okay with it. I too get pretty hungry during the day. Please remember that we are in the healing phase now. Just consider any weight lost during this period before the fill to be a bonus! I know its hard to be patient, but we really must remember that we probably don't have any restriction yet so we haven't truly seen the benefits from the band. It will get better. I have faith!

I take chewable Vitamins, Flinstones to be exact. I also cannot burp, the doc said that the gas in a burp was bigger than the inlet of the stomach so it can't come up. I've finally gotten a little used to it. Little side story about a habit that I had. When I drink liquids I have to be really intentional with every sip. I have a habit of breathing in before I drink. I now let the liquid hit my lips before I take it in. I was taking in a lot of air and that was causing burps and chest pains. If you have any unexplained pain though, I urge you to call your doc about it, better safe than sorry!

I think that the main problem is the surgical glue. Its all down in the holes, I think it really needs to come out and it would be okay. The holes that I got all the glue out of are healing well. There are still 2 that have a bunch of the glue down in them though.