hello folks! my husband and i will be traveling to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia soon to meet the baby girl we are adopting. my doctor and i are considering unfilling my band for the trip for a couple of reasons...1.) the high possibility of getting sick and throwing up, which could cause a slip. 2.) medical professionals there have no idea what to do with the band, so if i were to having problems, i'd be out of luck with getting help.

has anyone else done this while traveling? does the hunger come of fast? i have 6 cc in a 10 cc band and have lost just over 80 lbs. i'm scared of gaining weight, but near as scared as what could happen in Ethiopia with my band if i got sick.

any advice is greatly appreciated!

hello folks! my husband and i will be traveling to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia soon to meet the baby girl we are adopting. my doctor and i are considering unfilling my band for the trip for a couple of reasons...1.) the high possibility of getting sick and throwing up, which could cause a slip. 2.) medical professionals there have no idea what to do with the band, so if i were to having problems, i'd be out of luck with getting help.

has anyone else done this while traveling? does the hunger come of fast? i have 6 cc in a 10 cc band and have lost just over 80 lbs. i'm scared of gaining weight, but near as scared as what could happen in Ethiopia with my band if i got sick.

any advice is greatly appreciated!

First of all, congratulations on your new addition.

In your case, I would opt for an unfill. Just watch what you're eating while away and get your fill as soon as you return to the states.

I've seen many posts of people wanting an unfill simply to overindulge, doesn't sound like that the case for you. The last thing you need is to have an episode involving your band along with the emotions of adopting.

Wishing you much success...

An unfill might be a good idea but how about only a partial one? I know going somewhere like Ethiopia might be a concern but if you eat properly and be careful you might be fine.

I went back packing with friends through Thailand and Laos. Though some parts of Thailand might have doctors who I could go to for an emergency Laos most definitely did not.

At the time my band was 10cc in an 11cc band.

I simply ate my food super well, stayed away from anything that could bother me etc and I was fine not one stuck episode in 2 weeks. My friends never even suspected anything ( they dont know about my band)

If you do get an unfill don't worry about your weight. This is a happy time for you bringing in a new addition to your family and you should enjoy it and not worry about your weight just for a little while.

We travelled to China last year (December 2009) for 3 weeks to adopt our 13 year old daughter. At the time, I had 7 cc's in my realize band. I didn't get an unfill but I did delay a scheduled fill until after the trip in January. I took powered protein for my morning protein shakes, drank lots of bottled water, and was careful about the foods I ate.I didn't have any issues while we were there. In fact, I lost almost 10 lbs during our trip. I am sure the day we spent climbing the Great Wall had something to do with that! If getting an unfill would help your peace of mind - go for it. Otherwise, plan ahead and be careful about what you eat.