BetsyB

I have enough trouble with pills that I've had most of my meds switched to liquid. That said, small pills (birth control pill size) are no problem at all. They dissolve quickly and, even if they don't, are able to pass through even a restricted stoma. I'd give 'em a try whole.

I would go to my bariatric surgeon, no doubt about it.

My doctor tells me if I ask, but honestly--I have no idea where I am now. I haven't remembered since my second fill (maybe 5 months ago)---after a while, it really does become unimportant. (I know we place a lot of emphasis on it at the beginning, but your doctor is right.) I wouldn't ask unless I felt my doctor was being overly conserative (ie, giving me tiny fills that took me nowhere, but kept me going into the office and paying).

The general rule of thumb is that one should never ask whether a woman is having a baby unless there is a head emerging from between her legs at that very moment. It's a really good rule.

Bob, don't worry about the pain. With medication, it's easily manageable.

If you research the stats, you'll find out that the stories you are hearing are....well, stories. People tend to confuse bariatric surgeries. They hear of someone having terrible complications after bypass, then repeat it as a horrible banding-gone-awry tale. Don't pay any attention to these stories. They aren't true. By the time you hit the OR, you've been so thoroughly evaluated that the odds of mishap are next to nil.

I don't know Dr. Ortiz, so I can't address his expertise, specifically. I do know that, while I am willing to travel for surgery (and will, in fact, for my plastic surgery), I would never do so without first meeting the doctor. The problem with traveling to a foreign country--aside from language barrier---is that aftercare becomes incredibly difficult. And IMO, patient education and aftercare are really, really important to banding success. So as part of your considerations, do think about who will provide your aftercare if you do choose to travel to Mexico for the band. There are a lot of people on here who have done so very successfully. My personal recommendation would be to find a local surgeon you love, and ask him if there's wiggle room on his usual and customary fee for a self-pay patient.

Postop diarrhea is very common--I was told to expect it. Not much fun, but nothing to worry about :thumbup:

Yes---because most stuck incidents are due to "user error" or foods that just don't "work" with the band. If you have difficulty eating, in general, then no--no fill. But if you have occasional issues, and are not remaining satisfied between meals, a fill might be a great idea.

About six months. I made my decision before the surgeon's seminar, had my first appointment a few weeks later, and had an insurance-mandated 3-month supervision. Paperwork was submitted, and I was approved about 5 months from the day I registered for the seminar. My surgery was not for an additional month, however (due to holidays).

I have 5 herniated disks from neck to tail, a bum knee, a bad shoulder, and sacroiliac joint disease. (Thank you, Red-Light Runner.) I won't even scare you by telling you how long I waited for "definitive answers" about what was causing my pain. Let's just say that the aforementioned red light got run in 1981, and I had my first injection 3 years ago. Epidural steroid injections have been a GODSEND to me. Seriously, I am jumping up and down because I have a cervical epidural and sacroiliac injection scheduled for next week I get the injections every...oh, 4 months or so, and have for the last 3 years (I think). I resisted using narcotic pain medication for a very long time (like, decades)--and since I'm allergic to NSAIDs, this was really kind of foolish. Pain medication has an important role in pain management---it doesn't "mask" anything. Pain is a medical diagnosis unto itself---and medication helps treat it. However, using other tools in the arsenal can really reduce your need for narcotic pain relief. I do take liquid hydrocodone for pain. It allows me to do the exercise that helps my body more than anything else. It does not mentally impair me or prevent me from leading a full life. On the contrary, because I have intractable pain that cannot be effectively be permanently treated, it permits me to lead a full life. I do recommend the injections--many people get a great deal of relief from them. But if you have the attitude that pain medication "masks" problems, know that the injections, too, fall into this category. They don't really treat the problem--they reduce inflammation temporarily to provide some relief.

I understand completely. Really, we all do. It's a very frustrating period. You will get through it--and you will do great. Hang in there. Do what you need to do to support your loss. And it will all fall into place

600 doesn't raise my eyebrows even a little, and I live with a man who has congestive heart failure and is on a strict sodium restriction. Most Americans take in 5-6 grams of sodium a day--most of it hidden in prepared foods. That's 5000-6000 mg--most of it hidden in prepared foods. The Daily Value recommended for most people is no more than 2400 mg. The standard sodium restriction for those who require it for medical purposes is 2000 mg. Most bodies need about 1500 mg/day. If drinking lots of Fluid and exercising, more may be needed. So 600 at a pop? Definitely not a showstopper. It's pretty hard, with limited stomach capacity, to trip the wire of sodium overload. The band does a pretty good job of putting the brakes on, even for that. My concern about prepared foods is that they often aren't nutritionally dense. A Lean Cuisine just doesn't pack the same nutrient punch that a similar volume of good-quality lean Protein and veggies packs. And it's not easier to prepare, either.

What are you eating? If you journal somewhere like fitday.com, you can get a good, realistic idea of what does and does not work for you. I can tell you what has worked for me---but it may not be right for you. My doctor's regimen is low-carb, and comes in around 800-900 calories/day. I eat about 3 ounces of Protein at each meal, plus nonstarchy veggies. Occasionally, I have fruit. (I am "allowed" to daily, but really prefer veggies, so I lean toward them more.) I often use legumes as my protein source. At 75% of excess weight lost, we're "allowed" to reintroduce grains and starches. I have technically reached this stage (I'm 11.4 pounds from a normal BMI), but my goal is lower, so I only rarely include them. (For example, I no longer eat around croutons if the salad I order shows up with them. I occasionally eat sushi with rice...that sort of thing.) My doctor recommends 65 g protein/day. I feel and lose better if I aim for 80-100 g (and usually come in around 80 these days, with restriction). To do this, I do rely on protein supplements 1-2X/day (depending on what I've eaten). In a nutshell, for ME what works is: 800-900 calories/day 80-100 g protein <50 g net carb (from nonstarchy veggie, legume, fruit sources) only occasional starchy foods (ETA: I have to add, I also take a good-quality bariatric Multivitamin and other supplements. Fitday tracks nutrients, so it's easy to see when, for example, I need to take a Calcium supplement, and when I've had enough for the day.) I promise---PROMISE---things get so, so much easier as you approach restriction. You're in a a really tough phase right now, but you can lose during bandster hell if you tough it out. Yes, it's frustrating--it really is. But remind yourself that you're already on your way. This is the last time you will be hungry in the name of weight loss. Truly, the band will save you from that very, very soon.

Yes. The stress hormone cortisol causes fluid retention---and it affects band tightness, for sure.

The Inspire and PURE protein powders from bariatriceating.com are hands-down the best. Dutch chocolate + almond milk is delicious. And the PURE (unflavored) can be added to almost anything.

Are you a masochist? LOL I wouldn't do it, personally. Two weeks seems to be commonly accepted as adequate time to reduce the liver's glycogen stores. I'm all for giving it your all--but I think if I wanted to get a head start, I'd do it more conservatively, by focusing on lean Proteins and nonstarchy veggies---and not thrusting myself into the land of liquids sooner than necessary. Believe me, it will soon seem interminable for you.

If your doctor uses fluoroscopy for fills, you will have to swallow barium. But in MUCH MUCH MUCH smaller quantity--not enough to affect the bowels (thankfully)! Just a little mouthful. Upper GI amounts really do cause a lot of people to have really gross aftereffects. You won't have to endure the same routinely postop.

Your diet depends completely on your doctor's regimen. At 10 days out, I was allowed to have pureed Proteins. (ETA: Wait. I think Day 10 is when I switched to soft, moist Protein. Even better!) At 10 days out, I was really beginning to feel like myself again--I think you'll be okay for a big Christmas breakfast, especially if you have a bustling house with plenty of people to help :thumbup:

You're right on target. At the seminar, they will take your insurance info, so by the time you see the doctor, you will know if you've been conditionally approved. The doctor will fill you in on the "conditions." Generally, you have to be cleared by a handful of specialists: cardiologist, pulmonologist, psychologist. Sometimes, a sleep study is required. Also at your first meeting, you'll find out if your insurance OR doctor require a period of preop supervision. My insurance covers banding at Bariatric Centers of Excellence, but requires 3 months of diet supervision. This amounted to monthly weigh-ins at the doctor's office---no specific diet, just the requirement that I lose 6 pounds within the time frame. (If I'm not mistaken, the weight lost was a physician requirement, not an insurance requirement.) When you do see the doctor, you might want to ask about the preop education and aftercare provided. Who will see you postoperatively? (In my doctor's office, it's the surgeon, each time; I like this.) What kind of postop followup (in addition to band adjustment) is offered? Is there a support group? That sort of thing. In our zeal to get banded, we sometimes forget that we're choosing someone with which we're going to have a very long-term relationship---so choosing the surgeon and practice carefully is well worth the effort.

The psych I used went so ridiculously in-depth that my surgeon literally rolled his eyes and said, "So. That psychologist. A little 'special,' huh?" LOL He did "approve" me for surgery, but for some reason felt compelled to provide a 14-page report and to tell me that he didn't think I'd do as well as most bandsters. I told him he was flat-out wrong, and asked him to identify what indication he had of that. He first told me the conclusion was drawn from the "empirical testing" but then more or less admitted he thought I just didn't stick with stuff. My surgeon knew this to be ridiculous--I can provide years of food and exercise journals to any doctor showing that I lose when I eat around 800 calories/day and exercise routinely---but gain when I eat more than 1000-1100 calories. Hence the need for the band. Anyway, even though it wasn't the most fun experience I've ever had, my psych evaluation, it wasn't horrible. You just have to let anything negative go in one ear and out the other. (Obviously, the psych was really, really wrong about me. Because less than a year later...well, look at my stats. The band was the missing link for me.)

I lost very little on the preop diet. I'd been lowcarbing for long enough that my body just didn't purge tons. But the aim of the diet isn't loss--though it's often a side effect. It's to reduce the liver's glycogen stores so that the organ is smaller and the surgeon can more easily manueuver. Don't focus on the number. If you look at my stats, you'll see that little losses on the preop diet aren't predictive of future banded success :thumbup:

the Protein shots are not composed of the most bioavailable proteins; you'd be better off finding a good whey protein isolate powder (or ready-to-drink). Protein supplements don't have to be high volume or gross. Bariatric Eating has really good powders that mix with just 4 oz. liquid. There are both flavored and unflavored---the latter is really handy to have, because sweet can get tiresome after a while.

The preop diet is really hard. But you'll get through it. And it's really important that you stick to the regimen prescribed. It's not a diet designed to jumpstart weight loss; it's designed to reduce the stores of glycogen (carbohydrate) in your liver so that the liver is smaller and more easily manueverable during surgery. ETA:I know you know about the liver---the long period without carb is required to really deplete its glycogen stores. It's not necessary that this be accomplished without food. I think lots of surgeons go this route because it eliminates guesswork. Every doctor seems to have a different preop regimen. The foods you've chosen to eat actually fit in with my doctor's prescription (2 shakes a day, then a meal with 4 oz. lean Protein and 1/2 cup nonstarchy veggies.) You have not undermined your progress, vis-a-vis preparing your body for surgery. I wonder: if you were to call your doctor and propose a 2-shake, 1-lean/leafy meal regimen, if he'd approve. As long as you keep your carbs below a certain level, there shouldn't be an issue in terms of surgical prep. He might want you to return to liquids for the last day or so---or he might not. Until you get green-lighted to do something different, for your own sanity, it's just better to stick with what's prescribed. The second-guessing, the guilt, the worry....the satisfaction provided by cucumbers just isn't enough to compensate, you know?

I have no idea. I stopped asking after around 8.5 cc in an 11 cc. band.