Mimilou2004

If you can drink water go on a clear liquid diet for 2 days...if you are not better or can't tolerate these fluids call your doc for an adjustment before the weekend. Being too tight is a horrible way to live. Good luck, Mimi

Months is worst case scenario, weeks is more like it, LOL!!!! I would stop draining it and take a wait ad see stance....it can't hurt anything to wait and see....I wish I hadn't deleted my "alien baby" picture...you would really be spooked!!!! Don't worry, I have been reading about seromas for a long time and have been reading this board a long time and nobody has ever posted about a permanant seroma. Try to take it in stride and talk to it nicely, LOL!!! Mimi

It happened to me after my port revision and took several months to absorb.....everything I read says that draining rarely is a permanent fix because it is a reaction of the muscle tissue where the port is sewn on and until the muscle quits being irritated it will continue to make the fluid as a buffer. I have read several posts where it has happened after Plastic Surgery, too, and always goes away eventually. I did feel like I had a big old alien trying to get out, LOL!!!! Mimi

I have read where such things have happened....sometimes the fluid will go in past the kink but not out. I truly hope you get a diagnosis soon. There might be your last fill still in there. Mimi

It actually sounds like there is a kink in the tubing somewhere along the way. Good luck because I have never read that it can unkink itself...but that doesn't mean it is impossible. Best wishes, Mimi

I am very happy for you...I have no regrets. It has been 18 months and I am sometimes forgetting I have scars....Scars are nothing compared to batwings!!!! Mimi

I suspected as much...my hometown many years ago!!!! Mimi

What state and city is Ellis in?

I am a slip revisionist survivor and worry every day if today is the day it slips for the final time. My doc has already told me that if it slips he can't do another. My insurance doesn't cover VS only by-pass and that wouldn't be approved because I don't meet the standards. If worst comes to it, I will probably meet those standards within a year of band removal, and that is horrifying to me. I wish you the best in your decision making and seriously consider the VS. Mimi

I am nearly 3 yrs out and for the past 2 months haven't had a fill or unfill.....but I keep thinking about it. I am terridied of getting too tight again and slipping again. I exercise a little more to eat a little more yummy stuff instead of a fill. After so long banded I think it is easy for some of us to drift off into poor food choices. This journey is not for the faint of heart!! Mimi

I agree that you are a little too full...maybe even 0.25 cc removed would be enough....I don't think you should suffer any longer. Good luck, Mimi

I had my brachioplasty in Jan of 2010 and it is just now faded to where the scar is barely noticeable. SueHam is right...it is too pale to post a picture. I even bought a pretty sleeveless sheath dress for the first time in 40 + years. Don't worry about the scar, get rid of the batwings!!!! Mimi

I have been following your journey from your 1st post and I am sorry for what you are going thru as I lived your way for almost a year. I noticed that you stopped really active posting and I wondered what was going on. I am very afraid that you have been living with a very bad slip and now you may have erosion. I wish you well and I hope you keep posting. Mimi

I personally think you need to go to the ER and not wait til Tuesday...no wonder your urine is dark, you are dehydrated as evidenced by your losing about 10 pounds!!!! Mimi

It is covered in Standard with a huge co-pay...my practice covers approximately $375 of the $500 fee. I suspect your office is not coding properly because Tricare is tricare with no differences between N, E. S, W. Ask them to resubmit with different coding. Mimi

I have heard nothing but good things....they are a network of practitioners and I believe the website is www.fillcentersusa.com . I was all set up to use them and my own doc finally let me have an early fill, but I was pleased with all my interactions with them. Mimi

From personal experience, I believe you are darn close to where you want to be...you are probably only 0.25-0.5ml away. Try hard to not be frustated even though I know it is difficult. Make haste slowly now and you will be happier in the long run. If you are tired of "dieting" decide on a temporary plateau and go on maintenance for a couple of weeks...til you can get another adjustment. Allow yourself to understand your hunger as it is now and keep up or increase your exercise. Good luck and keep posting. Mimi

Rachel..."Knowing Facts" vs "Gettng It" are 2 different things...I am totally understanding what Carlos is saying.....my light bulb moment was very recently and I am a successful bandster x 2!!!!! Keep on going Carlos, you are going to be a success!!! Mimi

It is certainly a balancing act, and I am hundreds of dollars poorer from it. My co-pay is $150 and that is insane. I think I am at my stopping point for getting fills because what I needed stopped are what the band won't stop and that is slider food...... My band slipped and I had to have surgery and start completely totally newbie over because I was overfilled and didn't get an unfill so even though you are struggling now, you did a good thing. Even though your copay is so high, I think you should progress very slowly like 0.25ml per fill because you are so close and have demonstrated how sensitive your band is. I wish you all the best, Mimi

There is nothing like a personal trainer to keep you going...My 6 wks with CC has turned into > 2 years and it has been wonderful. She motivates me and is full of life wisdom.....I haven't had a real plateau ever. Whenever the scale didn't move we looked at my food journal and found the problem and made adjustments. She changes my workout constantly and has been very attuned to my needs to not be bored. I am having a series of foot surgeries in the fall and she is already working on formulating sitting and non wt bearing exercises to keep me in shape for when I can't treadmill for weeks. I hope you can find a personal trainer to help you. Mimi

I had surgery to reposition my port and switch to a low profile and after 6 months it is sticking out just as much as my first one...I should have keptmy original Alien baby and saved money!!! My PS wouldn't touch it and indeed refused to tighten my abs...and didn't give me any money back...I am still mad after 13 months!!!! Good luck, Mimi

If it is lactose that bothers you, then the ready to drink Oh Yeah is wonderful. I am majorly dairy/lactose intolerant with the bloating, pain and gas and have no problems with the Oh yeah. I make my own yogurt from Lactaid milk. Good luck, Mimi

I will be 60 in a few months!! I do not think Fraxel would help the arms, I am happy with my old fashioned arm tuck now that the scars are fading...those batwings were horrible. Fraxel is very expensive, unfortunately.

Congratulations on your journey...I hd several fraxel laser treatments along my journey and was spared a lot of face looseness for a long time...now I am seeing the wrinkling you talk about and I don't like it. Thank you for posting. Mimi

From what you have described, I think it would be OK to stay the same or get a tiny 0.2 adjustment and see what the scales do. I have been struggling with maintenance for a few months and it is just as much work as losing the weight. I actually had to increase my exercise to go along with less fill in my band. The good part of more exercise is you can have planned for calories from "forbidden" items. Maintenance is hard work and I wish you the best. Mimi