misschrissie67

Sunshine, I have heard lots of good about Dr. Gorospe too and have a family member that he did her RNY so I am sure he will do just fine. I LOVE Dr. Fisher and am soooooo happy I chose him. But there are plenty of fine surgeons that do lap-band. I am very excited for both you and oklabubba and your upcoming dates. Please keep in touch and let me know how things go.

Welcome oklabubba. Good luck with your surgery and let us know how things go.

Hey sunshine, that sounds good. Also I see you have a surgery date for January. :clap2: Cool ! Good luck and let me know how things are going. I went for my post-op appointment yesterday and doctor said I am doing great, just like I should be. I am going to get my first fill Jan 3rd. woohoo. I am so happy I did this. I'm sure you will be too.

FDA actually approved the Lap-Band for use in the USA in June 2001. As with most new surgical techniques, it took surgeons awhile to get trained and get their technique perfected. Sharon Osbourne had her lap-band put in in 1999 and lost 125 pounds. The stats are out there, but you may have to search them out. And I think getting on an Australian or European message board is a good idea. Good luck.

The band has only been done in USA for little over 3 years, so that's why not so many have had it more than that. However, Europe and Australia have been doing it for many years with great success. My understanding is it is the most popular and successful tool used over there.

Good to see all my neighbors are doing well. Those of you who are post-op look like you are doing great and even Sunshine who is pre-op is dropping. I didnt lose any weight on my pre-op diet. :grouphug: Not even the week I was on liquids! I am about an hour from Tulsa and 2 hours from OKC, but would be willing to drive for get-together sometime. It feels good to have people around who know what you are going through.

Just wanted to say HI to all my neighbors and hope everyone is doing well. I am 2 weeks post-op and doing well. Down 13.4 pounds. Please keep in touch, love to chat with those closeby. Maybe we can even get together sometime.

Congrats to you! :clap2: My insurance had a WLS exclusion also and if it had not been for my fiance stepping up and paying for my banding, I could not have had it done. I am now 11 days out and doing great. I do keep a food diary so I can easily add up how much protein and water I have had :xena_banana: . But they say, eventually it will become second nature. In a few months I can eat whatever anyone else does (but don't think I will want to go back to my bad habits of junk food). We have been out to eat a couple of time since my surgery. At first I just ordered a cup of soup (and you would be surprised how much better soup tastes in a restaurant, I guess just like everything else does when you don't have to do the work or cleanup:Banane28:). Two days ago we went to Red Lobster, my fiance and I shared a cup of chowder, and then I ordered the 1/2 order of broiled Tilapia and mashed potatoes. I ate about 2 ounces of the Tilapia a few bites of mashed potatoes and left the vegetables. I took the rest home in a doggy bag. It's really not as hard as I thought eating out would be. Good luck on your journey. :gluck:

So far I have been lucky. Not really hungry, not craving things, but also not trying to eat through the band. In our support groups, the doctors, dieticians, and nurses told us that the most important thing to remember is the band is a tool not a fix-all. It is important to follow the diet given to you, not cheat, and eat very very slowly. The latter one seems to really be helping me. I have learned to take really tiny bites and lay my fork/spoon down between bites, chew chew chew, and allow the food time to travel down my esophagus before I take another bite. MY nurse and doctor say that if you really want to, you can ultimately eat through the band and eat whatever you want. I am so afraid of getting something stuck or getting PB that I have not even tried things that were questionable about hanging. My only guilty pleasures were a tiny (emphasis on tiny) taste of my finace's key lime pie and my daughters chocolate cake and ice cream. And it just honestly wasn't that good. Anyway, hang in there Yvonne. Don't give up. Remember this a fight for you life and you havent even got the gloves broke in yet. And its definitely a fight worth winning!

Okay I am just curious if anyone else is experiencing what I am and if it will last (God I hope so ). I am only 10 days out from surgery, have lost 13.5 lbs . It hasnt been that long ago that I was this weight, but now my energy levels are way up. The fatigue I had before is gone. I want to get out and go and do things. I want to clean house. (I want to do alot of things I am sure I shouldn't be doing yet ) Is this energy normal? Will it last? Is anyone else experiencing it? I love this feeling . I haven't felt this good in about 100 pounds. I am just hoping it will last til I get 100 pounds (or more) off. Would really love some feedback on this. :director: Thanks

Barbara465 and Kwhenrykerr, thanks for the info. :yo: That is very good information to know and will help me make a more educated decision.

Melanie, You and I were banded just a couple of days apart. Looks like you are off to a great start. :clap2: And there's lots of great support on here. I am also here if you want to chat. Congrats on your success so far. And good luck in the rest of your journey.

Okay thanks. Now next question.... What are the benefits?

I just had to say I completely agree with the title of this thread! :clap2: I just pray our country can hang on 2 more years.

Excuse my ignorance here. Would someone please tell me what fluro is and what it does?

Okay, y'all asked for it, so here it is. This one actually symbolizes me and my parents. I am the purple rose in the middle. My mother is the hummingbird who nourished me and the eagle is my father who watched over and protected the family. I am also going to attach a copy of the one my fiance got which is a memorial tattoo for his mother. It is a celtic cross with roses and says mom on the banner. Hope you enjoy. I also have some other tattoos, maybe will post those later. :eek:

I have a large tattoo across my lower back and am hoping it doesnt get too distorted by the weight loss. Also if I had to have a body lift, and they cut me all the way around, I too would lose the bottom half of my ink. I totally understand your concern! Guess we would just have to get a coverup then. :eek: Also understanding "it hurts to laugh." :eek:

Thought I would share some pics of my grandbaby, Izzy. She is enjoying some of Papa's famous BBQ ribs.

I have been still having quite a bit of soreness from my surgery a week ago. I am amazed at some of you already back to work. I think the reason I have been so sore is because after the surgery my doctor told my fiance that I had at some point either had an ulcer or had internal injuries from a car accident (I've had several in my life) which caused my organs to all bind together. :doh: So when the did my surgery they had to cut or pry things apart to get to what they needed to get to. Anyway, in chatting with others and reading posts here, I can only assume that is what has led to my being more sore for a longer time. Well, I think I found the solution to get my mind off of that pain. My brother, a tattoo artist, is visiting from SC and I decided to let him tattoo me last night (I already had 4 others). Anyway, I got the tattoo in the middle of my left calf. OMG it freaking hurt!!! :censored: I have never had a tattoo hurt that bad. And today my leg is killing me. I feel like I can barely walk! But the good news is....I have completely forgot about my tummy pain. :eek:

Thank you BetsyJane. And look at you too girl. 15 lb ! Ain't it great to see that scale moving in the opposite direction?

I researched Dr. Gorospe before I decided to go with Dr. Fisher. In fact, I had originally chose Dr. Katsis, which is Dr. Fisher's associate in the office, but met Dr. Fisher at the information meeting and was so impressed by his honesty, openness and personality that I knew he was the one for my surgery. I also like Dr. Fisher's nurse, Anita, alot. Dr. Fisher and Katsis are members of surgical associates of Tulsa, and do other types of surgery also. They do RNY as well, but it seems like are doing more and more lap-bands. They have one of the best mortality rates anywhere, which impressed me (and is why I chose them over Gorospe). Dr. Fisher has always been very caring and his bedside manner is excellent. I would recommend him to anyone. They have an informational meeting once a month (the first Monday I think) and a support group meeting (the second Tuesday) that are open to anyone. You can call the office and ask for the info line for the bariatric surgery and they will connect you with a recording that tells you when the info meeting is. Hope that helps.

:update: I just wanted to say...LOOK MY SCALE MOVED ... DOWN !!! :clap2: WOW, I cant believe it! 8.4 pounds in 5 days. I am in heaven! Yes, I know I am in the honeymoon phase. I know the weight loss will slow down. But dont rain on my parade today. Just let me bask in the glow of my weight loss.

Hey Kimberly, I too was/am self pay. Dr. Fisher and Southcrest both give a discount to self-pays. Yes, its still pretty expensive (@ $20,000 total) but I feel like its the best investment I have ever made. I would be glad to share any info with you, or anyone, about Dr. Fisher and Southcrest. I received and continue to receive EXCELLENT care from both. Good luck on your journey. Please feel free to email or IM me, maybe we can meet sometime.

Thanks Karen. I am adjusting much better than I thought I would. I was afraid I would be craving everything in sight, but that has not been the case at all. I really am not focused on food like I was before. I am so happy just eating my little 3-4 ounce meals!!! I know I will have less restriction as the swelling goes away, but I am not unhappy at all about it. It is all even better than I thought it would be. According to the scale, I havent lost anything yet, but I am not worried, I know it will come off. Isnt it nice to know you arent going through this alone? I sure think it is.

I had my surgery yesterday 11/29/06. :clap2: Everything went well but it took a little longer than expected because the doctor ran into some scar tissue from an old accident or ulcer or something. He says I am doing good. I am VERY sore, as is normal I'm sure. I had to stay overnite because I have sleep apnea. I am really glad to be home. Hard to believe I can have less than 1/4 cup of broth and 2 teaspoons of jello and I am full. Anyway, I am banded, home, and doing good. Just thought I would let everyone know. Will back be on later. Chrissie