tarrn13

I have to tell you, there was no way I could last on the pre op diet of shakes either that we had, I spoke with the nutritionist for my doc and we agreed that I would follow the cals for the day but could do it with real food instead since I didn't like to eat a bunch of chemicals anyway plus knowing that just drinking would so not fill me up, so a typical day had oatmeal (plain) raspberries, best life yogurt with kashi, apples and string cheese and lean cusines. Our limit was 775cals, I did more like 1100 a day, lost 15lbs pre op and also walked to ensure the loss. Good luck, maybe consider the idea of real food instead of shakes, just get through this short while before surgery and you'll be ok.

Hey there, I had surgery with Dr. Ortiz and his post op diet is liquids for 3 weeks post op (if you can drink it you can have it, use your head though nothing like milkshakes and such) and then no mushy stage just straight to regular food. I was not hungry at all for the first 3 weeks post op, in the 4th week I became slightly more hungry and at that point had been eating for a week, had my first fill just under 6 weeks for 1.5cc in a 10cc band and am going for my 2nd fill on thursday. I had no desire to sneak anything in the inital post op time, mainly since as a self pay I did not want to risk anything that may cause damage to my band. As for preop, we had a 1 2 or 3 week option to choose from. good luck with your surgery!!

so far i have had no issue with eating sushi and have had it a couple of times, I am cautions to eat it slowly though and each piece gets eaten in a few small bites, i do see though how the potential is there for issues with the rice and/or seaweed, reason why I am cautious with it.

hey, so to answer your question, I have had 1 fill so far and am going for my 2nd on thursday, so far i have 1.5ccs in a 10cc band, well I lost 15lbs preop and had surgery on 3/25 and have lost 13 since surgery so it's a little slow going but I'm very happy with the changes, i was in a tight 16 preop and am now in a loose 12, could probably easily fit into a 10 and have ordered a skirt in that size for the summer.

Hey BBK, Hope your feeling better now, and loving your new body even more than before.

cmayes, I was banded by dr ortiz 3/25 and use fill centers usa as my aftercare provider, had my 1st fill on may 1st and am having my second one here on thursday, there are 30 locations throughout the country so maybe there is one by you, I go that route since it is far cheaper than a flight and boarding for my dogs to return to Mexico, also dr o is on the board of directors of fill centers as he is one of the founders of it, you could also try private practioners but your success with getting accepted by one varies significantly, just have your post care plan in place before you have surgery. Since you asked my BMI was like 34.5 when I started and is now 30.5, getting down there slowly but surely, the biggest thing to remember is the less to lose the slower it goes. good luck, you'll have a great exp with dr. o, my whole trip was smooth sailing.

the regular port is fine on me and i was 205 preop ( my overall high was 240 though, lost a good part of it on my own)diet at 5ft 3 or 4, currently i am 177 and you can feel the port but not really see it, i too am a pear shape, i would get the regular size port for nothing else than it is easier to hit for fills, and not requireing floro all the time is a selling point too. good luck with your choice.

you look fabulous!!!! congratulations on your progress!!!

luluc, that recipe for the ricotta sounds rad!!! i am totally going to make it!!

wear whatever you want, this is hardly major incisions we're talking about here, nothing too tight is about your only limit.

mnn2501, this board is not the place for ignorant statements, people are asking questions to make educated decisions based on the experience's of those that have gone before them, not for the scare statements disguised as "jokes"

not at all steph, I was totally confident in my choice.

manatee, good call being done with your blind date girl, just means your life wouldn't be any better for meeting her. Good luck!

hey usmc23, I was only curious about why you decided to do your own, I am an N-ICU nurse and had planned to do my own too, figuring that since I was a self pay in mexico, insurance and liability blah blah blah... but then I went for my first fill and the way my port is postioned is slightly angled and my doc ( who has been in bariatrics for 38 or so years) had a bit of a hard time finding where to stick so I have opted to just keep going to him although I would really like to be able to do my own too. Like I said before, just discard the saline and do a complete refill, and it should be fine.

I might be interested in it, depending on when it is, and cost of course.

what made you decide to do your own fills? I don't think a little blood would hurt the band but I might just take all the saline out, discard it and start fresh by reinjecting the volume you discard.

Hiya all, I just found this thread, I was banded in Mexico 3/25 by Dr.Ortiz, had a great experience with his clinic, had my 1st fill 5/1 and am down 25lbs so far from the preop diet, started out in tight 16's and an now in loose 12's, almost ready to try sz 10, I live in Seattle as a travel nurse with my 2 traveling dogs, I think that the banding was one of the smartest decisions I have ever made. Looking forward to getting to know all of you.

5 weeks is a really long time to be on some form of the post op diet, mine was 3 weeks of liquids, if Icould drink it I could have it. It is a little distressing to me reading peoples posts about "good and bad" foods or cheating, it's not about cheating or good and bad, it's about choices, somedays I have frozen yogurt as a treat but factor it into my cals for the day, or if 1 day I have 1400 or 1500 cals, the next I have somewhere in the 1100-1200 range that I find I now naturally am compensating for the higher cal days without too much thought. By focusing on what we do wrong, it increases our risk or failure, look at what your doing right and realize that no one is perfect every second of every day.

aphrodite, tell your family to get over themselves, it's not about them but about you. My mom came with me and we NEVER once felt we were not safe. Sandiegophotog, I appreciate that some people have horror experiences in Mexico, but people have horror experiences here in the US too, do your research on whatever doctor you choose, I was banded by Dr Ortiz in Tijuana, had a fantastic experience there, I chose him since he teaches many doc's how to proform the surgery both mexican and american docs. I personally would rather see the teacher whose done thousands of bands vs the student who hasn't, but that's just me, also as a nurse who works in a hospital, the post op care i received at the clinic in MX was far more attentive than any care I have ever received here in the US for both surgery and ER visits. We are all entitled to our opinions and I am just sharing mine. Good luck all on your journey,

hi steph, I had my surgery with Dr Ortiz 3/25 and had a great experience from the time we arrived till the time we left, I had no complaints at all, the weekend I was 1st home I got sick with the flu (so did my mom, we think we got sick on the plane) I emailed Dr O on Sunday am and had a response from him within an hour about my being sick and if I should be concerned about anything. You can't beat that, what doc's here in the US give out their email/ mobile numbers unless your dating them, I work as a nurse in a busy N-ICU and we are like the gatekeepers to the docs. I would go back to Dr. O and his staff in a second!! As for the follow up care and fills, I use fill centers usa, as they are in 30 locations throughout the country and as a travel nurse I can be secure in knowing that when i have to move for a new contract all my files will travel with me, that way I don't have to search around for a private practice that may or may not take on clients that were banded elsewhere.

I use the fill center here in WA and I love love love my doc!! he's eccentric, funny and has been in bariatrics for like 40 years, as for insurance or self pay, I was a self pay for surgery so am a self pay for the fills, the initial visit is 349 and the following fills are 165 and just office visits are 85, check out their website Fill Centers USA - Lap Band Fill - Lap Band Support - Lap Band Post Surgery - Weight Loss Surgery - Fill Center USA - LapBand Adjustments - Bariatric Surgery - LapBand Fill, what I really like about them as a travel nurse is when I have to move for work I can just go to another fill center and all my files travel with me and I never have to search to find a provider, there are currently about 30 open centers. Hope this info helps!

good luck sunflower!! i am from montreal too and currently live in seattle for my job, at least for about another year anyway, I was banded 3/25/08 by Dr. Ortiz in Tijuana and have been so very happy with the results so far, for sure the best 8000 I have ever spent!!

welcome wisemom. Hershey Med in PA? I used to live and work in Chambersburg. you'll find lots of great info and support on these pages.

steph co, your comment in the above post about adding the 180 useless pounds to your ticker when you lose your husband cracked me up!! congrats on the police academy, if I had not gotten into nursing school, cop was next on my list.