Andy Liz

I'm wondering what NSV means too. I've seen it a lot and I know it's good but just can't quite figure out what it stands for. Thanks! Andy

I haven't been banded yet but I'm already thinking about a TT and a boob lift. Even in my youth when I was thin I always had a poochy belly and I swear my boobs started out headed for the ground - so basically these are not going to be any better after being stretched out for 15 years. I'm having my band place by Dr. Rumbaut in Monterrey and I hear there's a good plastic surgeon there as well. I'm going to check him out while I'm there to see if he's someone I want to go to - lots cheaper there than in the US too. I'm not for sure I'll do it because man, I'm 42 and I certainly don't expect to be wearing a bikini or anything but I'd love to get rid of the tummy so pants would fit better. I've always had the tight around the waist and bagging in the butt syndrome with jeans and pants. A friend I work with had gastric bypass about 2 years ago and she had a TT and boob job with a surgeon in Kansas City. She showed me her scars (about a year old) and it didn't look like it was done very skillfully so I'd like to see some of the surgeon's work before I drop that kind of cash for something I really don't need. Yes, I think the need for ps is based on genetics, degree of obesity and length of time obese but I also think plastic surgery, just like getting the band and everything in between is a personal decision. I'll just be excited to have to decided whether I want it or not! Andy Liz

Gracie - a similar thing happened to me. I told my brother I was "thinking" about having band surgery and asked him to tell no one. I shared this information with him because I thought he would benefit from having the band too. The next time I went to visit him (4 hours away) I also visited a very close friend that lives in the same town and found out that my brother had told him that I was getting gastric bypass in Mexico. My friend said he was very worried about my well being and that I shouldn't have it done. Luckily I had the opportunity to smooth things over and tell him I was just "thinking" about it at this point and that it was lap band - not bypass etc. Then I ate my brother's butt for opening his mouth and he said that he didn't remember me telling him to keep it quiet! Isn't that kind of an important thing to remember in a conversation? I'm sure I STRESSED that because it is very important to me. Lesson learned by me - if I don't want anyone to know, I'm keeping my pie hole shut - period! So, I have decided on the surgery, I've got my date (8-17) and I've now only told my husband and the friend that's traveling with me. If it get's out then it get's out and I'll just have to deal with it then. I live in a small town and I don't want the entire place to scrutinize every move I make and judge whether what I did was good or bad based on my weight loss speed and success. I think that when I reach a certain point I'll be willing to share my experience with a few that really show interest and would benefit from the information. We'll just have to wait and see....? Anyway, I wish you lots of luck and take care! Andy Liz

Hi! I love this thread topic because it just makes me so sad and mad to realize all the living we've missed out on! I'm so glad there's a place we can share these things! Here's my list - Only tables at restaurants because my stomach touches the table if I'm put in a booth. I refuse to swim even though it's excellent exercise and something I love because of obvious swimsuit issues and the embarrassment that ensues. I go to parties and events but hesitantly and I don't enjoy them because I feel like the most huge person on the face of the earth and surely everyone is talking about my enormous stature under their breath. I have made up excuses to not go to the lake with a dear friend and boat, swim, ski, wave run, etc because of the swim suit issue named above. This same friend wants me to sky dive with him - okay he's a little crazy but can you imagine a woman the size of a baby elephant dropping from the sky? Even in a best case scenario I'd surely break something in the landing and by the way, how big would my parachute have to be anyway? No snow skiing, class reunions, cute clothes - I could go on forever.... My tiny adult niece told me last summer that I should wear smaller clothes. I pulled my baggy shirt next to my body and asked her if that was really a better look for me (this brought to light the rolls I was hiding) and she agreed that baggy was a better option.... So, I'm getting really excited about getting my band (8-17 with Rumbaut) and I think it's mostly because I'm going to get some confidence back and be able to not worry so much about what everyone else is thinking because I'll just blend into the crowd. I'll never be the knock out that turns heads when I enter a room and that's just fine with me, but I'm also really hoping that the days of turning heads just because I'm so damn fat are getting close to over! Thanks for letting me get that off my chest! I think we all can feel each other's pain on this thread - I'm so glad we can share these things - it really helps! Andy Liz

Hi Gang! I have a date on August 17th with Dr. Rumbaut in Mexico. I'm really excited but nervous at the same time. Is anyone else going to be in Monterrey on that date? I'm going with a friend that had the procedure with Dr. Rumbaut the end of April which is nice because she knows the routine. I haven't done the last supper thing yet, but I have been gaining weight which normally would have me in a tizzy. I think since I know I'll have a lot of help in about a month I'm not getting too upset about it. I'm going to do the liquid diet for 2 days prior. I'm only required to do it for one day but I want to be sure I'm cleaned out well and my liver is the size it's supposed to be. I plan to eat fairly lightly the week before too - so the week before that will be filled with all the nutritional "crap" I'm going to be bidding adieu to. I may indulge with a margarita the night before surgery just to Celebrate a little!!! I'm excited to be a part of the August Band Crew! I'd like to hear from some of the previous August Band Crew members about the progress they've made, anything to be observant of, things they've celebrate and mourned (I'm thinking I'm going to be mourning the loss of bread) and any helpful hints. Take care and wonderful experiences to everyone! Andy Liz PS - Hey Jill - I'm going to do the soup diet the week before surgery I think too. I live in Missouri and there's a Melting Pot in Kansas City that I've wanted to go to for a long time - you think that'd be a good place to go for the "last supper"?

Hi Everyone! I have also had fluctuating weight this week. Down 4 lbs at one point I am now back at my original weight - mostly due to the 4th pig out last night and fluid retention I'm guessing. I'm beginning the crazy soup diet today that I fondly refer to as "poop soup" because with all the roughage that's what it makes me do! I picked some fresh green beans this a.m. to put in it and I've got all my fruit ready for today. I'm starting to get hungry so that's where I'm headed! Amy, good luck to you on your surgery and try not to fret about your daughter - probably just being away from home and being spoiled. As long as she feels good and is staying hydrated I wouldn't worry. I'll be very anxious to hear about your trip and experience. I've set my date for August 17th in Monterrey with Dr. Rumbaut. I'm going with a good friend that I work with who had it done in April and she's going to get her first fill then too. Should be an experience for both of us! Best of luck to you! Andy

I'm in nearby Missouri and plan on being banded by Dr. Rumbaut in Monterrey in August. They refer to Dr. Malley in Kansas City for follow up and fills - I think he's on the Kansas side. I've heard good things about him and that he is more than happy to take over Dr. Rumbaut's patients. I'm still working out the details but I was wondering - if you want to disclose this information - what your out of pocket was for your surgery. I'm a self pay and elected to go to Mexico because of the savings. I hadn't heard of the doctor several of you used and was thinking that if the airfare keeps going up it might be cheaper to have the surgery closer to home. As far as telling your significant other - depending on what the issues are, I think if you do your research first, decide for yourself what you're going to do, take responsiblity for the procedure and whatever outcomes may occur and just present it without excessive emotion and with lots of confidence he'll just assume he can't do anything to change your mind and he'll play nice and be supportive....? Good luck, I know these things are difficult, but if it's what you truely want to do, don't let nay sayers keep you from it.

Yep, I'd keep calling him or better yet - go to his office everyday and ask if you can pick up the letter. If they say it's not ready just tell them you'll be back or you'll call in a couple hours. If they're rude to you again, tell them so and tell them you plan on making a formal complaint. Just hound the hell out of him. Granted, I'm sure he's a busy man, but pleez, if he doesn't understand the trouble you've gone to, to arrange your schedule for surgery then he should be reported. Afterall, our physicians should care about our total well being - not just what we're complaining about when we pay for an office visit! Good luck and keep us posted.

Hi! I'm an RN in a small town hospital so I get to work in Med-Surg, ER, ICU and the Nursery. I love it and to all those people in school for nursing or working towards a career in nursing - hang tough and you'll never regret the sacrifices! It's a wonderful job if you know what to expect.

Hi Everyone!:confused: I'd love to join this group! I just weighed myself and much to my chagrin have gained weight since I last weighed. MAN, that is such a downer! I've started a low carb plan for the week to lose some of this fluid and reduce my carb cravings and then I think I'll do the soup diet that several are following, then switch back and forth as necessary to stay on track. I'd like to lose 17 lbs by my banding August 17th. I currently weigh 267 and yes, this is my all time high. Seems like I've seen a lot of those lately! My ultimate goal weight is 150 although my surgery goal weight is 250. I'm 42 years old and am 5'8". I've been married 18 years and am an RN in a small town hospital with no children but two darling pups I call "the boys". I'm just going to a day shift position this week so I'm hoping that will help with my weight loss too. I snacked so much at night to stay awake that I should cut my calories substantially just by being on a regular day schedule again! We work 3, 12 hour shifts so on those days I can guarantee I won't be working out unless I get a pedometer. Then I can calculate my steps for the day and include those in my workout totals....?! My reasons for wanting to be banded are few. Primarily I'm concerned about my health. Right now it's not too bad but both my parents had diabetes and all three of my brothers have it as well. I'm showing signs of insulin resistance which is a precursor to diabetes so I feel very strongly that now is the time to take action! My second reason for wanting the band is that I feel like I'm missing out on so much life. I love to swim, play tennis and be physically active but just find it too difficult or in the case of donning a swim suit, too humiliating to participate. So, hooray for the band and hooray for this wonderful site full of information and support! I'm very eager for my band placement and look forward to the positive life changes in store for all of us! Andy Liz

:hungry: Amy! Just a word of warning - my friend that had her band placed in April didn't do a pre-op diet and ate fajitas the night before her surgery. She experienced HORRIBLE gas pains for several days post-op. She's had other laparocopic procedures without incident so she thinks it's because she induldged the night before. Just to be on the safe side, you may want to have your "last supper" a week before your surgery...? I think that's what I'm going to plan on - now just to decide what it should be..... Whatever you decide to do, I hope everything goes smoothly for you! Andy

Good for you Amy! You'll probably be glad to only have to go through abdominal surgery once - I know I would be. A friend I work with had RNY about two years ago and had a TT and boob job about a year ago. She looks really good - I'm hoping to look that good soon too. I'm getting really excited and I've actually started looking a clothes again - although I haven't bought any - no more new ones until they're smaller!!! I think I might start this diet for awhile too. What liquid protein are you consuming? I haven't found a good one and I live in a rural area so I don't have a lot of choices. Take care! Andy Liz

Here's what I think happened - only my opinion but..... I think what happened to you is called a vaso-vagal episode. This can happen when your vagus nerve is stimulated and causes your blood pressure to drop quickly. How was this nerve stimulated? I'm going to guess that with your higher level of restriction maybe the food bolus (dry clump of fish) put pressure on this nerve on the way down causing your b/p to drop and the color to leave your face. Fainting is the end result. How to avoid this in the future? I'm not banded yet so I won't give you lots of advice but I'm thinking smaller bites might help and allowing plenty of time between bites. Be sure to call your doctor and let us know what he/she says. Good luck and take it easy until then! Andy Liz

Hey Amy! I haven't been on here in awhile and was wondering what happened to your apron surgery....? Looks like you moved up the band surgery though, did you have a change of heart? I thought I was going to have band surgery in July but apparently the office scheduled me when the doc is going to be out of town, so now I've moved it to August 17th. Glad I hadn't bought the plane tickets yet! Best of luck to you and I'm rooting for your success! Andy Liz

I love seeing all these pictures - what fun to get a little glimpse into your lives!! Jana, when I looked at that very muscular colt I'm thinking Tank would be a good name! Let us know what you decide to call him. Andy Liz

There's some debate as to whether an early fill causes erosions and/or slipping. She might believe this to be the case which encouraging you to wait would be in your best interest. I tend to agree with this information and plan to wait as long as possible after being banded (July 13th - Dr. Rumbaut)! We're all different and will respond individually to the band and the process of being banded so I think there should be plenty of room for some uniqueness of care. Whatever you decide I wish you lots of luck on your weight loss journey! Andy Liz

I'm with you DianeChef - that personal assistant sounds marvelous! What a wonderful world we create for ourselves in our minds.....ahhh! Anyway, I'm wondering if your doc would give you a prescription for a diuretic so you can take them when you feel the restriction building and until you get back to normal...? I don't know if it would work, but if it did, what an easy solution! Good luck! Andy Liz

Hi Everyone! I've got my band date set for July 13th with Dr. Rumbaut. I'm very excited!!!! Now just to shop around for cheap airfares - it seems they've gone up $200 since I last looked for them a few months ago, crap! I've tried 10 different sites that offer cheap tickets (including CheapTickets.com) and there's not much difference between them. Oh well, I'll make it work. I'll be very anxious to hear about your trip and to see pictures of your results. Best of luck to you and I'll be sending lots of prayers and happy thoughts your way. Andy Liz

Letty, What your describing could be a hematoma, inflammation or infection. Watch for redness, heat or discharge - these things would indicate infection and should be treated immediately. The other things will go away but may take some time. Ice is great and just give it some time. My mother in law had bypass surgery and where they took her vein from her leg was a large (orange sized) hematoma. She never complained of it being really sore but at her follow up visit they did drain a little of the Fluid off. It took almost a year for that knot to completely reabsorb. I feel like what you're describing is inflammation from the surgery - especially if your body is sensitive. I've had a previous laparoscopic surgery and the small incisions had grape sized knots under them for quite some time - I'm guessing it was several months, but they went away very gradually. So, if they're not bothering you with pain or signs of infection, just keep putting the ice on them and practice patience! Good luck! Andy Liz

Oh Wise Banded Ones! :hungry: I'm trying to get the hang of taking small bites and chewing to nothingness to stave off the golf balls and PBs I'm reading so much about when I finally do get banded - but man, I didn't realize how rarely I chew my food. It really disgusts me to think of how I eat! I'm finding that I begin concentrating on taking a small bite, chewing well and waiting several seconds before the next bite then before I know it, my mind has drifted off and I've cleaned several mouthfuls off my plate! This is so hard, I mean eating is really monotonous! I can't believe I said that. I think this would be even more difficult in a social situation when the mind is engaged in lots of other things ....yowzee! Something I'm finding interesting is that many banded folks report they actually enjoy their food MORE...?! It's no wonder, they're actually aware of eating it and probably even tasting it! I know this is going to take more practice and awareness on my part but this brings me to my latest question - Do any of you have any practices that worked especially well for you when trying to remember to take small bites and chew well. Do you do anything differently when dining out? I'm thinking I'm going to have to do nothing but give it my full concentration until it becomes a habit for me - that may take years or a few golf balls of negative reinforcement but I feel like I should really be trying to do this now. Thanks to you all in advance, I learn something new everyday here and really appreciate your input! Andy Liz Keeping my fingers crossed for banding in July with Rumbaut

Hey All! I've been out of town for a week and just made it back to my computer. All your advice sounds great and I'm going to get some infant utensils to see if that helps me take smaller bites - surely it has to! I ate with friends and family for almost every meal while I was gone and really tried to concentrate on eating more slowly. What I discovered was that I wasn't always the first one finished and that I filled up on less food. Amazing - what I've always heard IS true! I'm just seem to be alittle slow! Thanks again for all the great advice! Andy Liz

Thanks for the advice! It really is amazing how different cultures are. Maybe I should try to dine with chop sticks! That would keep me busy for awhile. I think this problem stemmed from my childhood - We ate our dinners together every night and of course I had to come inside from playing with my friends and couldn't go back outside until I was finished so I wolfed it down to get to go outside quicker. My dad ate really fast too, my mom used to get so angry with him because he'd be finished eating by the time she got to sit down. I don't know if anyone else does this either, but when I'm in a hurry - and who isn't? - I tend to do everything fast and have a really difficult time slowing down for a meal so I think that frame of mind encourages me to "hurry up and eat". I usually am the first one finished eating at home and when I'm out with friends so I really need to concentrate on eating more slowly and chewing better. I'll incorporate your ideas and see how I do. I'm getting ready to visit my brother and his kids (adult kids) for about a week and we'll probably do a lot of eating out so this will be a perfect time for me to practice. I haven't even tried the not drinking with meals yet - I'm usually so thirsty because I don't drink enough between meals - yet another thing for me to concentrate on. One battle at a time - I'll work on that one later. Pew, my dog is sleeping under my feet and he just broke wind, gag! Have a great day and I'll check back in with you all later! Thanks again, Andy Liz

Rachel! Good luck with whatever avenue you take to have a child - all those options all are very stressful and get even more so over time - just be prepared for lots of ups and downs but don't give up! I'll pray for your success! Andy Liz

Hello Bandsters! I am planning to have surgery in July with Dr. Rumbaut and have found this site so helpful in gathering information - THANK YOU ALL! One thing I haven't found yet is anything on port placement. I've heard that most doctors place it near the waistline and that it causes pain when bending over. A friend of mine just had her surgery a few weeks ago and requested that it be placed right below her breast bone - several inches above her waistline - so far she's happy. I'm really interested in finding out where your port is placed and if you're happy with its location, especially as you get nearer your goal. Best wishes to everyone! Andy Liz :cheer2:

I had a couple abdominal surgeries and know what you mean about the numbness. That stinks! I'm with Tamryn though, with your continual skin problems you'd think insurance would cover it - worth a try! However you go about having the procedure done - best of luck and keep us posted on your results!