Hello i'm 26yrs old 202lbs and i've been wanting to get banded but i'm a little scared. I've been doing research and i ran into this forum which i think is great! There's so much information here. There's just a couple questions that i would like to know. How long does it take to get back to work? Do you feel weak after getting the band? Is it painful? I'm ready to make a lifechange, i've been overweight all my life and I want to live long. If i dont do this obesity will take over me. If there's any one from the Dallas area who got banded i would love to know where and which doctor. I would really appreciate any comments or answers. :thumbup:

Time back to work varies from person to person. I was back in four days. Others have needed two to three weeks. Its highly individual...nobody reacts to surgery the exact same way.

I personally did not feel weak after getting the band. Just normal postoperative recovery type fatigue.

Yes, there is some pain involved. You have incisions from the surgery. The band around your stomach feels very tight in the chest until swelling goes down. Abdominal and shoulder pain from gas blown into the abdominal cavity during surgery affects most people at some point and it can be very unpleasant. Again though, the degree of pain depends on the person. Some people need narcotics for a few weeks. Others a couple of days. Others not at all.

I was banded in the Dallas area by Dr. Manuel Castro. I am extremely happy thus far.

*i would have needed 2+ wks if i worked outside the home. i had a lot of port pain - was very fatigued.

*i felt weak the first 4 wks - basically till i was able to go to solid foods did i start to feel like myself.

*i had a lot of port pain. since i didn't carry much belly fat, my port was stitched into muscle; and that required a bit more TLC.

*in DFW, i went thru True Results, Richardson TX. my dr is no longer affiliated, but i had a fine experience.

good luck to you!

I just got my surgery one week ago exactly. Like you I am 27 years old, I have been heavy all my life, I was always an athlete doing lots of sports and lots of working out, but it didn't seem to get all my weight off. Once you grow up, its hard to find the time to help keep some of the weight off so I blew up to 240 lbs. I think its the best thing I have ever done for myself. I am getting married in a year and plan to have kids in about two years and I had all the fears of getting sick such as diabetes. One week later I am down 10 pounds and an overall of 17 pounds since I started the pre-op diet. I felt the pain from the incisions and the gas but really one week later I felt good enough to go to work, it is very important to get your rest and to prepare your food ahead of time for the day so that you don't follow through with your diet. I am seeing a nutritionist and a psychologist to help me through my journey and to make it easier so I don't feel like I am on my own. I planned for about 4 months before I had surgery to make sure I had all the necessary things I needed in place to make this a successful journey and so far so good!! Good luck and if you are ready to make a change, this is definately a good one.

Hello Pink101:

I took two weeks off vacation time to have the procedure done. For me it was the right amount of time I needed to recover.

Yes, I felt weak, because of the liquid post op diet, so I was glad to be home during this phase. But once I was on the mushie stage, I was no longer feeling weak. I was energized.

Yes, I had pain, but I took pain meds to help with that. I stop taking pain meds on day 4 post op and started taking liquid Tylenol when needed.

What office is Dr. Manuel Castro in? Did you have to self pay?

I went through TLC Edge to use Dr. Castro. You can choose between 4 doctors. Dr. Castro also gives the same price if you go directly through him. Google new beginnings surgery and you should find him. Not sure what differences there are if you go through him directly. I found that the TLC group was very thorough and got me set up for my self pay in less than two weeks. Hope this helps!

Yes, I was self pay. I too went through TLCEdge but would not do so again. I am dealing exclusively with Dr. Castro's office at this point. His price is the same as TLCEdge, so no reason to use a third party. Total cost was $9990. This included pre-op testing, all surgery expenses and six fills in one year. After the six fills are up he will bill my insurance for fills thereafter as an office visit only and I will pay only my usual co-pay.

I was banded 5/19/09 and am currently almost to my 3wk mark. day 2 was the worst! my mom was at my house to watch the kids so I slept most all day! day 3 i slept about 1/2 and I just get better from there. by my one week I was back on track and doing all of the house hold chores, gardening, taking care of the kids, homeschooling, and running my cleaning business. I waited to be 1.5 weeks out before I started shoveling and weeding in the garden. my surgeon said if I started lifting too soon I could cause the port to flip/twist or move. so I was careful with this.

If you still have questions Dr. kelly is holding a free seminar in Fortworth TX on June 23rd.

He will be doing alot of Q&A. I am totally excited because he offers sooooo much support.

I can get you more info if you would like it.