Mariasha

The actual travel should be fine. Just make sure you have a doctor lined up for fills if you need them while your there.

There is a forum here specifically for low BMI bandsters. I would suggest you go through the posts there. Low BMI Bandsters - LAP-BAND

First of all God wants us to take care of our bodies and our health. You need to do whatever you can to get healthy again and the statistics are clear that the only way to lose the weight and maintain it is through surgery. I look at obesity as an illness, no different than I would look at diabetes. Should a diabetic not get the insulin they need but rather just pray to god to heal them? Of course not! Same with obesity. You are simply getting the help you need to fight this illness. Final point. The band is not some kind of instant fix that you will not have to work at all. It is a tool that if you work with it, will assist you on your weight loss. I see no reason why the band should be a contradiction to the other things you want to do as well such as praying and trying to deal with the underlying issues. They can go hand in hand together. Feel free to send me a PM if you would like to discuss this further.

Use Firefox and install the adblock plus extension. No more ads on the Internet anywhere. I was recentley using someone elses laptop that only had Internet explored on it. I was shocked at the amount of ads. I'd forgotten how painful it was to use the Internet with ads.

Most here have the allergen lapband. The realize band is a similar product but made by a different manufacturer.

You can lose it yourself without the band. But without the band The statistics say you have a 95% chance of gaining it all back and probably more. The only long term solution for people like us is to have surgery. You didn't write any of the reasons why you would not want to have this procedure. What are they??

The insurance requires you too have a bmi of 40 or higher to be eligible for surgery. Based on the numbers you gave, in order for your BMI to drop below that number you would need to lose 110 lbs. Unless you are concerned about losing more than that in the next six months I don't see how making healthy changes could hurt...

Liquid diet is hell. Just remember that this is the last time you will have to be hungry to lose weight again.

Listen, we all lose at different speeds. I was banded 6/21 and have lost a total of 87 pounds. I really wouldn't worry about losing to fast. As long as your eating and exercising as your supposed to just be greatful for the rapid loss and remember that it will slow down at some point.

As a fellow teacher I feel your pain. Teaching really is one if the most demanding jobs. That said, my health and my band is ny very first priority. I get up at 5am each day and am in the gym for an hour before school even starts. Sure, it's hard to get up at that hour. But you feel so much better throughout the day after a good morning workout.

Extermely happy with my band. Absolutely no regrets.

Did you have insurance or are you a self pay?

I feel like I write this every day. Normal weight loss that we can expect to achieve is one to two pounds a week. Anything faster than that is a gift. Be grateful for it, but don't raise your expectations. It will slow down and you're just setting yourself up for dissapointnent.

Jachut, I have the larger 14cc band and my experience has been similar to what you are describing. I think it just varies from person to person and as you said behavioral and attitudenal changes.

Personally I haven't had a problem with it. If I did I would get sashimi instead.

I'll take it a step further. As someone who was overweight for almost all my life, I can tell you that I never knew what the feeling of being full was until I had my band. I was either starving hungry or stuffed so full that I couldn't eat another thing. The idea of eating and being satiated from that food was something totally foreign to me. I did not even realize this about myself until after I had the surgery.

Different people have different size stomachs, hence the different band sizes. I too, have a 14cc band. It really is best not to go to fast on the fills. Do you really want to end up in the ER because you can't keep anything down, not even Water? Also keep in mind that as you get closer to restriction, even a small fill can make a big difference to your appetite.

Yes it is. If you are interested I can send you a link to a video of it being performed. Not fit the squimeesh.

You need to try and prove that it is a medical nessasity. Take a look in the cosmetic surgery forum for more detailed info

There is a forum here that deals specifically with pregnancy and the band. You should find a lot of good information there. Pregnancy with the Lap-band

Out of pocket in the USA is anywhere from 10 to 15K or more. In Mexico I believe you can get it for significantly cheaper. I was a self pay here in the US and have absolutely no regrets. My life is worth a lot more than the money I spent.

You will know if the band has slipped. I have not experienced it but those who do seem to report extreme discomfort. Yes, the lapband is secured to the stomach during surgery to try and reduce the chances of it slipping If you stick to your post op diet you don't need to worry about stretching your pouch. In truth, at this point before you have had any fills you don't even really have a pouch. I'm not sure what diabetic boost is but I would check with your surgeon if they want you having those or regular Protein shakes. You would find out if your port was flipped if your doctor tries to give you a fill but finds that they are not able to access the port. pills need to be crushed. You could try mixing them in to apple sauce or something sweet like that. Hope this helps you.

Honestly, there is not much to do about excess skin. None of the creams or lotions do anything. Drink a lot, do exercise, hope for the best, and remember that worst case scenario there's always plastic surgery as an option.

My surgeon realized my port was flipped the first time he tried to fill me. He gave me the first fill while he had me open and was fixing it. Having the port fixed is really not a big deal. Nothing like the original surgery.

Congratulations on deciding to take control of your life, and good luck with your surgery!