Hi im Steph, I live in the outback, on a small island off the tip of northern australia, called the northern territory, in a small community called bathurst island part of the tiwi islands. population 1500. one main road. hell allot of dirt roads. hell allot of creepy crawlies and crocodiles and the sea of course! im 21 i study case management thru correspondence and hope to work as a social worker in the near future. nehoo i came across this lovely site and across allot of people who are also struggling with weight problems, im finding it exciting coming across stories and photos of people all around the world struggling with weight management. i too am struggling. my bmi is around 30 or 35 i cant remember and am currently due for surgery in South Australia within a week and a bit exact date: 7th of jul '11 and am not sure how im feeling about the surgery. I hope that i can share my story with others and visa versa and also make new friends!

One question. As you are in such a remote area how easily will you be able to get back and forth to see your Dr to get adjustments? It could be an issue if you get stuck/are too tight etc and need to see a Dr urgently. Have you discussed with your Dr how you would handle this type of situation? If not I would contact him/her and have the discussion prior to going ahead with surgery.

Whilst the band is an excellent weight loss tool it is not thought to be the best solution for someone that cannot easily access their specialist. In these instances the sleeve is often recommended instead.

Yay! Another Aussie!

I'm 18 and live in Newcastle, NSW.

Getting banded on the 5th of July. =)

Wishing you all the best!

♥Aly

Hi. My dad has money also i travel allot, does that answer your question? Im well aware of these issues and have been given suffice information about complications ect involving this type of surgery, if you think I havent done my homework, like some cases, your wrong.

Aly-

woot!woot!

I cant wait to get this surgery done, i hope it turns out well for both of us!

Not quite sure why the tone of this post seems to be attacking me. I was merely pointing out that when you have a band if you are somewhere remote it can cause problems. I am glad that you have done your homework - being well informed about the process makes a huge difference.

It is good that your dad has the funds to get you help should you have a problem , the actual logistics and time taken to get to help are probably more of an issue than the money.

As you live in Australia it is likely that your Dr will be conservative and fill your band slowly. That is the usual protocol here and that way you are less likely to have a problem than if you were being filled aggressively.In your position I would make sure that I was patient with the process even though at first it may seem slow and like it will take you forever to get to a reasonable fill level. Do not ask the Dr to put in a bigger fill so that you don't have to see him as often as that might backfire. Also it might be a good idea to arrange to stay in SA for a day or so after each adjustment rather than flying straight back home so that you can make sure that the fill is comfortable and that you are not too tight.

Good luck with your surgery . Soon it will all be over and you will be on the road to losing weight and looking fab. I still can't believe that I have had my band for 2 years already.

haha ok.i really dont know wot ur talking about on the third paragraph. yes and thank you for the suggestions but i have already made plans in regards to stay.

2 years aye? good on u