hi everyone,

I am still in the researching stage of banding, but really looking forward to having surgery before the end of this year.

I am avidly reading as much of the posts as I can, and am getting worried about all the talk about exercise!

I am currently about 310 lbs (5'8") and am so exhausted all the time. By the time I have cleaned up around the house, taken care of the kids, cooking etc, I am ready for bed again!

My question is, how do you all find the energy, just after surgery, surviving only on liquids, and then mushy food, to go for mile long walks, and swimming and all the other things I am reading about?

I am scared that I'll be shattered after the op and practically WEAK from just living on liquids that i won't be able to exercise and will miss out on essential weight loss.

I can see being able to lose weight when I have gotten rid of maybe 25% of my excess fat but what will I do until then to speed up the weight loss?

Sorry this is so long but I can't seem to find any information on this miraculous energy surge?! Maybe its just pure enthusiasm and "Band High"????!!!! I'd be so grateful for any of your comments

thanks

Hi Babs

Thank you so much for the info on the fills! I'm having my first barium swallow this morning (which I'm REALLY looking forward to ! I hope they find my port and can do fills easily......

Bright: You asked about who you should tell.......well, I told a few close friends, most of whom were supportive. A couple of them were shocked, but came around when I explained how the op. worked. Then they were also supportive.

My mother was the worst. She told me off for making a decision about my own body without consulting her! (which must be normal, after all, I'm only 45!) Anyway, she reluctantly accepted that I did have the right to make my own decisions, but I've not felt very supported by her - quite the opposite.

Anyway, I'm not planning to tell anyone else as I have quite a peverse desire to see whether people change behaviour towards me when I get slim. The way I see it, the people who accepted me fat, are good enough to be my friends when slim. Those who suddenly start taking notice of me after having ignored me before, won't impress me....................... I'll just tell them I did it with 'diet and exercise', which won't be a lie!

But, don't tell yourself that this is an easy way out! It is a way out. It takes courage to be able to admit we can't do this alone and we're merely using our common sense to take advantage of a tool which will help us to overcome our eating disorder. I didn't realise how big a trigger hunger actually was until I got the band. I am feeling quite hungry now and then, but most of the time it's around mealtimes and I can delay it by having a cup of tea or some Water (something that Weight Watchers recommended but it never worked for me before).

Anyway, I have to go for my barium thingy now so, I'll let you know how it went...................aagggh! Yuk!

TTFN,

Sarah

Babs - you're brilliant! Thank you SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much - sounds amazing - heading to the website now - i'll let you know how i get on!

Sarah - hope your barium thingy went ok - god help u!!!! Think you're rignt about telling people. I will tell the people who never cared whether i was fat or thin and drive the rest mad trying to figure out how i did it!! I know it's not an easy way out - i will be forced into making better choices despite myself!

Take care guys xx

Hi Bright

Just to let you know I survived my Barium x-ray (disgusting, though it truely was) and it confirmed my own thoughts, that the band is not tight enough - in fact, the Dr said it was if there was nothing there!

Well, that actually makes me feel quite good about myself because that means the 8kg I lost over the last 4 weeks is almost entirely down to me!

Anyway, I did enquire as to whether Dr Marre spoke English or not and was told (not by him because I don't see him until Friday) that you shouldn't worry and that they usually manage to get by!

So, if you want, because the clinic is near to where I live (which is actually West of Paris between St Germain en Laye and Versailles, I could even come along with you to have a consultation..........what do you think?

Well, better go.........boys to sort out! How old are yours? Mine are 5 and 10 (I'm a late starter!)

TTFN,

Sarah

hey Sarah

I was an early starter! My boys are thirteen and nine! My nine year old went back to school today - summer hols over! I really miss him! My other son goes to secondary school and won't be back until wednesday - I'll be heartbroken! It's sunny but cold here today - a real back-to-school-september morning!

Glad your barium thing went ok - god isn't that brilliant about your weight loss? You've been battling hunger all by yourself for the past few weeks - well done!

Thanks for asking about Dr Marre, I think I have read so much about the surgery at this point that I may just do it myself! I reckon I could muddle through with the french - I went onto the French bandsters yahoo page last night and tried to pick up relevant vocab!

Did you see babs message to me above? I sent off my info to the uk based organisation she recommended to me so hopefully, between you, me, babs and a surgeon I will be sipping a turkey and stuffing flavoured Protein shake by christmas!

take care & keep in touch xx

sarah - just reread your post above and saw your offer to come with me! Thank you so much - I'm overwhelmed with the kindness of strangers! I would really love that if you wouldn't mind - i'll see how it all pans out with the other uk based company and try to call Dr Marre in the meantime.

Thanks a million - you're a pet xx

Hey Bright!

I'm not THAT strange!

Check out the prices of the UK company..........they have to take a cut, though, so I'll try and find out how much it would cost over here.

Just as a guide, I had to pay 145 Euros for my Barium thing this morning, but it took them half an hour and they took loads of shots. It may be that for follow-up visits you could get some of it reimbursed.......I think you have that E111 form in Eire, don't you? It's supposed to be fore emergency type stuff, but works for coughs and colds type visits to the doctor and my sister-in-law had a gallbladder operation (which was an emergency) in Belgium once, but the follow-up op. was also done in Belgium. Anyway, just a thought!

If you want to come over and have a chat to the Doctor as part of your research, I can make an appointment and you can talk it over with him (I will, of course, come with you if you want!). I guess I'd need to know your full name and details, though......

If you want, you can email me directly!

Sarah

PS: My boys both go back on Wednesday. They go to an international school and are both now bilingual - which was one of the main reasons we came here!

hi Sarah

sorry I didn't mean it like that about the strangers!!! It just feels so great to get all this help from people I have never met!

Yeah - I'll wait to see what happens with the other UK based company, but I will try ringing Dr Marre too - Probably on wednesday when I will have some time to myself!

I'll send you an email asap with my details, if nothing else but for future friendship!

thanks again

Hey Bright/Sarah,

I know the consultant I sent you gets a cut, but it should not be too significant because the two doctors that are doing the procedure pay her to market them. The one doctor has over 3,000 lapband procedures under his belt. This is very significant since there have only been 60-100,000 lapband procedures done altogether worldwide. It would probably be worth the extra expense to have someone hold your hand through the whole process.

Sarah, Glad your fill went well. Makes a difference heh?

I am working today, so I will try to reach you both in the evening.

Babs in TX

Babs/Sarah ~ I agree with you Babs, for the peace of mind alone, of being able to talk with someone in my first language, an increase in cost would be worth it!

If you reckon, Sarah, that the op in France would be 4000 euro and the surgeons in the UK have quoted me st£6,600 and £7,750

which works out at 10,500 & 12,300 euro, somewhere inbetween would be great. We had budgeted for about 10,000 - the first (cheaper!) surgeon seems really nice - he's belgian (you'd love him Sarah!!) (Michael Van Den Bossche) and includes in the price, the first follow up and fill, subsequent visits st£100 - the other guy John Rogers, already has 6 - 8 patients in Ireland and has done 250 lap bands - apparently the most of any surgeon in the UK.

But these guys pale in comparison to the surgeon on Babs recommended website who has done 3000! So I guess I'll just wait to hear back from them and see if they'll accept a patient from Ireland!

By the way Sarah, it's great your boys are bilingual (sp?) - what a gift to give them - it will open many doors in the future for them i'll bet.

How are u feeling these days Babs? Still happy with the op and the band and everything?

talk soon guys

by the way does anyone know what the difference is between a lap band and the Mid Band? The gastric band service offers the mid band and the picture of the device looks different to the pictures of the ones i'm used to looking at:confused:

Hi Guys!

Babs: Didn't actually get a fill today, only got to drink that ghastly stuff - seemed like a couple of pints!(Shame it wasn't Guinness!). I see my surgeon on Friday, hopefully to get a fill (although I'm really pleased what I've managed to lose without any restriction!) I'll also ask him for details of his language scope and prices. I did ring the Clinic today, but they said only Dr Marre could tell me.

Bright: They did seem to think that you could get reimbursed by your Irish medical cover - have you already checked this out? If you could get a referral from your GP, could be worth a try?

Anyway, must go, boys to feed!

TTFN,

Sarah:cool:

Hi Bright

Just thought I'd mention, I've been reading another board:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/europeanbandsters/ which is a yahoo group. There's a lady called Jackie, who's using the De Montignac Consultants to get her band done in a couple of weeks.........maybe you want to get in touch wither her. She's also writing a very interesting journal, which most of us can sympathise with, I'm sure.

TTFN,

Sarah

PS: My comment about not being strange was a joke - I know you didn't mean I was strange!

brill Sarah - i'll try there too - this is becoming so REAL! I got a weird email from that nurse Sharon at the Di Montinac Consultants - hold on - I'm going to try to paste it in here:

Dear.xxxxx (I xxxxed out my name for a bit of privacy!)

I.am.so.sorry.aout.the.weird.punctuation.in.this.email.but.I.am.using.a.foreign.key.board.

I.willspeak.to.you.as.soon.as.I.can.-.you.can.try.00.44.1395519285.and.see.if.my.colleague.is.at.the.land.line.I.will.be.in.Dublin.in.October-hoping.to.encourage.some.Irish.surgeons!..Meanwhile.as.soon.as.I.can.send.you.some.sensible.details.I.will.so.please.do.not.be.downe=heartened.this.contatinas.none.

Kind.regards

Sharon.Bates

MSc.RN.RM.DipCo

de.Montagnac.Consultants.Ltd

I get the foreign keyboard bit but why should i be downhearted???!!! Cos i've to wait til october? Great news about her coming to dublin though!

Honey I know about the strange/stranger joke thingy - it's so hard to get what you actually mean across on this medium!

By the way I sent you a personal message on this board and i see you haven't read it yet - click on the "user cp" button on the top of the page and you can find any personal messages!!

Dear Bright, Sarah

The midband is the French version of the band. THe lapband is manufactured by Inamed and is the only band that is FDA approved for use in the US. Many Lapband patients in the US have the Swedish band if they went to Mexico to have it done. I don't think you should worry to much about which band you get, but if you are getting the operation is France, it seems that it would be more likely that you would get the French band. When you finally get to the stage where you are talking to Dr.'s ask them which band they use and what the differences are if any.

At least you have a telephone number for the consultant even though the message was quite dyslexic. Also I noticed she was an RN with a Masters, so at least you are talking to a real medical person.

Sarah,

Sorry you did not get a fill. I am sure it will be coming soon. I have been doing well with my fill. I have not spit up or barfed yet. I have really been taking my time when I eat, like a half hour or more to chew my food properly. I am disappointed because I have not dropped any weight in the last 11 days despite my efforts to be diligent and regimented with food and exercise. I think I am retaining Water. I am waiting for my monthly friend to come and nothing is happening with that either. I am sure once it does, I will drop4 or five pounds. Lets all stay in touch!!!

Babs in TX

-37 and counting

334/297/180

Hi guys

just got a bunch of stuff through email from the De Montagnac people - well namely that nurse/ceo! Sharon - she sounds great - guess what - looks like it will cost 6500 euro (euro are pretty much the same value as $$$'s these days!) which is great! Doesn't include flights but that's not a problem - ryanair are really good value and my husband travels so much we have a few airmiles too!

yay! this is moving along so well!

talk soon xx