Littleroo27

I didn't look at the article, but from what I understand, that can happen when the salt levels in your body become too low from drinking way too much water. It's really really hard to do! In fact, with IBS if you drink too much water you just end up spending the night in the bathroom with bad cramps. I did that once in college during a "drinking" game. I don't drink, so I had a gigantic mug of water and downed too much of it - UGH.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/01/13/water.intox.ap/

THE SECTION WITH: PREVENTION OF WATER INTOXICATION WAS AN INTERESTING READ

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_intoxication

Not to turn this into a wank session, but I just wanted to respond and say that if she feels the way that I do - she's probably way more worried about / for you then trying to make you mad. This is a big big secret you are keeping and none of us want to see you get hurt if he finds out later and doesn't take well to the deception. You are right - to each his own. We do not know your situation. While I do not feel that I could ever keep that kind of thing a secret, I am also not in a situation where I have to, so it would be unfair of me to say that I could never be in your place.

Please keep in mind that as much as we may gasp at the situation, in the end, we just want to be there for you and help where we are able. I am interested to know how you are doing with the band itself. Are you still suffering from nausea and vomiting or has that eased with the meds from your doctor? My concern would be a slipped band if that keeps up. Not sure how you'd explain THAT ER visit, lol.

Nita,

I actually read this last night and all kinds of thoughts flooding my wee brain. Part of me wanted to ignore you and the other part of me wants to confront you. Hopefully I can find a middle ground here.

While you are certainly free to speak your mind and I would never dream of stopping you even if I could, isn't this supposed to be a place of support? I had to come here, use a different name, a short version of registration info and I did this because I wanted to tell SOMEONE what I have done. And what do I get from you? Telling me about disfunctional relationships and how wonderful yours is because you don't need to do what I did.

Considering you don't know me, my husband, our situation, what is going on right now... that's a bit of a leap for you to make such comments on a SUPPORT board. Do I expect you to agree with me? Of course not. But to write such a post is something I would never do. I hope nobody ever does it to you.

Perhaps you need to look at this from a different POV. Some people are simply desperate enough to do what needs to be done and let the chips fall where they will. Until you have SOME clue as to why he didn't want me to have the surgery perhaps you might consider how you word your opinions. For goodness sakes, at least get the details before jumping to hasty judgements.

Okay, you wanted to say it and now you did. Feel better?

Cheers.

Well, let me put it this way. I'm mad because my new insurance covers the surgery, which means I won't have to spend the money, but NONE of the doctors are anywhere even near as good as Dr. Ortiz. I went down and visited the clinic and met Dr. Ortiz in person and came out of there wanting to set up my appointment for the next day if I could have.

Hi guys.my name is Lidi,

I am to afraid to make a decision to do the lap band in Mexico,which most of did it with dr.ortiz or india, :-? i know couple people did it.

a lot of people discourage me about mexico.please help.and is there someone live in virgina or dc area that have done it in mexico??????????????

Hey Marissa,

I was just curious if you knew what your resting rate for calorie buring is. My doctor told me that mine is slow as well (1600kcal/day resting), but I have a normal thyroid and eat too much, thus I'm going with the band. Good luck!!!

OK so, I have not have my band done yet i am schedualed for february and I still have doubt as to whether I should be banded versus bypassed. So a brief overview; I am 21 and at 267, The problem is I have a very very veyr slow metabolism and unfortunatley dont eat very much at all throughout the day but I am still FAT! If I was to get the band would this probem be solved? or better will I still loose weight or be cursed with the same problem??

Hi tatem! I'm in San Diego too Great place to be this time of year! I'm 26 and 325 (UGH). I would be more then happy to talk to you about my experiences so far (pre-op, of course). If your insurance covers the surgery then I would recomend going to Scrpps Clinic Center for Weight Management in La Jolla. I did all the pre-op stuff there before finding out that my old insurance wouldn't cover bariatric surgery. I was planning to go to Dr. Ortiz, but now my new insurance covers it, but not through Scripps Clinic. Red tape - tell your parents to expect a few headaches along the way.

As for weight loss, it does vary, but they say that if you are losing a pound a week that you are doing good. Slow and steady and all that, right?

I would really recomend that you order Lap Band for Life (which is written by Dr. Ortiz - how I found this page). It clearly explains everything from the first day you start considering the process up through pre-op, surgery, post-op and "eating for life" type of stuff. It's very easy to read and pretty fast, but super super informative. I ordered mine on amazon, but you can also have it delivered to your local barnes and noble or borders.

Hi my name is tatem, I'm 16 years old and live in san diego california. I'm 310 pounds and i'm signing up for lap-band surgery. I'm curious as to how fast i am going to lose my weight, and just general facts about the whole procedure. I want to know how much you lost in the first three months, if it was very difficult to follow the plan, and i would love to see before and after photos.

I would appreciate any responces, Thanks!!!

I must admit to being a little worried for you. I'm sure that the vomiting is stress related. Heck, you'd probably be nauseous even without the band had it been something else this big that you were keeping from him. The best way to get rid of the nausea? Tell him.

Of course, I don't know your husband and I don't know the conversation you had with him regarding the band, but still - at some point he is bound to notice that you have new scars on your body and have lost tons of weight. Men are (generally) oblivious, but not blind.

I kinda took a different rout. I'm single, but my parents are very important to me, even if we live many states apart now. When I told them I was thinking about the surgery I never asked them if it was okay to do it. I just said "hey, just wanted you to know that I'm considering thing." Even though you are married, he really can't tell you what you can and can't do, and he sure as heck can't tell you NOT to get it done, even if he doesn't approve. But I'm not sure that going behind his back is the best way to go about it.

I will be interested to hear what happens what he does start to notice the changes. Didn't he figure out that you were on a liquid diet pre-op and post-op? Or did you just tell him you were doing slim-fast?

I agree, that sounds like a fantastic idea! I've stopped checking the boards as much recently because it does seem to be the same questions over and over again.

Hello everyone! I was noticing that every couple of weeks, as the board picks up new and curious members, we are seeing the same questions again and again(not a complaint) I was just wondering if it wouldn't be a good idea for someone to set up a section for FAQ here. The questions I am referring to are things like the cost, the cost of a companion, what to wear, VG band..etc. Just thought it might be helpful to newbies and it would give them a place to find answers right away instead of waiting for someone to post an answer. Nita

The pre-op diet is used to shrink your liver before surgery, the lost weight is more of a bonus feature, so yeah, you will need to do it no matter how close to the edge you are. It's more about the reduction of fat and calories going through your liver before surgery so that it gets smaller and is easier to move out of the way during surgery.

I am calling tomorrow when the office reopens to arrange for surgery, but have a lot of questions. What is a VG band? Who decides what kind of band you get? Why is one used for some people and the other for others? If your BMI is just barely in the qualifying range do you still do the pre-op diet? If you decided to have the band taken out, does it cost the same as it did to put it in?

Not at all. The diet is often a requirement of the insurance provider. It's sort of a test to make sure you can stick with it before they pay for some huge operation. They probably figure a certain percentage will wander off because they are unwilling or unable to either do the diet for 6 months or regularly see the doctor or something else. The hospital itself would probably cut me open by the end of the month if I asked them to, since I've already done the pre-op requirements of going to the orientation class and the support group and I have a letter from my psychiatrist proving that I'm mentally stable (for the moment, anyway!!!). But CIGNA requires that I do 6 months of doctor supervised dieting first. Big jerks.

Six month preop diet? What six month preop diet? Does that mean I can't get the lab band done for at least six months?

Unfortunately, I don't have any out of network coverage with the Cigna HMO. The only time I'm allowed to go out of network is if I need to go to an emergency room when I'm out of town. This is my first experience with an HMO and I do plan to work the system as much as possible, but it's certainly more of a PITA then a PPO. Even with a PPO, they won't cover anything done out of the country.

I plan to see my new PCP in the next couple of weeks and get started on the 6 month pre-op diet, if nothing else. I can worry about who is cutting me open in another 4 months.

Right now I am at my highest weight EVER and feel like crud. It's hard to get up from the sofa or even roll over in bed! I've never had a problem like that before and at 26 years old, it's scary. So far I haven't let my weight stop me from doing anything that I want to do (I've never really WANTED to run or jog, so that's not a problem, lol), but it's really starting to hurt my body. Within the past 15 months I have gained nearly 90 lbs. That is some seriously bad weight to gain at all, much less so quickly.

What's funny is that I am not depressed or sad or any of that. I actually started gaining weight back when I began dating a wonderful person and developed a social life. We are just friends now, but the social life and extended friends are still there. And so are my bad eating habits.

Littleroo -

If your new insurance carrier does not cover Dr. Oritz (as he is not in their network ?) you might be able to get your PCP to request on your behalf that your surgery be covered out of network. You obviously have built a trust with Dr. Oritz and that means everything when one is having surgery. Although I am not a patient of Dr. Oritz, it is quite obvious to me he is held in high regard and is an experienced surgeon. You maybe be able to mention that as well that he has more experience etc....

Good luck but don't take "no" for an answer either.

EJ

I haven't heard many "horror" stories either. I have read first hand accounts of bands slipping, but the person was so greatful for the lap-band and the success it had given them that they couldn't wait to get it replaced. Also, waiting a little longer to get your band filled and making sure to get more fills of smaller amounts, rather then over-filling right away will help keep you from either slippage or erosion, though sometimes things do "just happen."

Certainly Dr. Ortiz has a much lower complication rate then any of the US surgeons I've talked to or researched so far.

I am scheduled in March, and I amazed at how many positive things I've read from people post surgery and how few negative things they've written. I am excited and "hopeful" for a positive outcome. Has anyone out there read or heard of any horror stories? So far, I haven't come across enough to convince me this isn't a great tool worth the risk. Any comments are appreciated.

Usually it's your weight, but the main factor is how big the area to be banded is. Just like our waists, our stomachs come in different sizes too - some of us need a longer "belt". The end result is the same though.

Oh, I see. Well, that makes sense. What factor determines whether or not you get the VG band, or the regular one?

A lot of people are very happy with gastric bypass, so it's up to you, but be sure to consider all the options. Gastric Bypass has a lot more complications both directly after surgery and over the course of your life. You will lose the weight faster, but it won't help you feel more full, it will just make things go through you faster. And as someone with IBS, I can tell you that is NOT fun.

Depending on your age you may have to go back in to get the lap-band replaced at some point. After all - it is plastic, and plastic degrades eventually. But I'd honestly rather do that then worry about having bits of my body removed and not being able to fix it later.

You all seem so happy with Dr. Ortiz, my insurance approved me right away (Oxford) it took them 4 days to aprove it and they are paying the entire $25,000USD if i decide to do the operation. But im a chicken and if I do decide to have surgery - I dont know if i should do lapband or just get the laproscopic bypass done - i mean if im goign to do it i should just go all the way right? well i dont know but im a chicken! a fat one! I just dont want to have the lapband done and then god forbid have to have another surgery to take it out! Any suggestions?

Checked this afternoon to see TWO updates! one is written by Robert Morgan and the second by his wife. This really is an amazing series of articles.

December 14

December 17

Main Page

One thing to remember is that when you go into surgery, your digestive tract is completely EMPTY, save for perhaps a tiny amount of stuff from the shakes. Once you start eating solid foods again, all that space fills back up - and it can hold a LOT, even if your stomach can't. So you are going to gain weight back post-op. It's pretty much inevitable.

Also, you are only one month out of surgery. At this point you're supposed to be finishing up your recovery, not worrying too much about the pounds coming off. Wait until after your second fill (your first fill often reduces in restriction as air comes out of the band) to see how things are going before getting too frustrated. Slow and sure is the way of the band - there is not supposed to be an overnight change in your body. As far as I'm concerened, any month that I'm not GAINING weight is a good one.

Well, the most experienced surgeon covered under CIGNA (in my covered HMO area) has done about 100 lap-bands. And, of course, that's a lot. But compared to Dr. Ortiz - it's NOT! I'm trying to get my insurance to consider adding some other doctors with more experience, as 90% of their covered surgeons specialize in gastric bypass / reux-en-y and not lap-band. *sigh* It's a process!

Plus, I have to do 6 months of doctor supervised dieting first. Like I haven't been doing THAT off and on my whole life...

Wow! How lucky to have your insurance pay. I have Florida Health Care and I think they are the last to approve anything new, so if I waited for them I'd probably be 80 years old before they would pay for it. I even checked local doctors and found a few, but none with any real experience and they charged a LOT more, so I was really happy that I was able to go to Mexico. I was so impressed with everyone there, but if I could have saved that much money - I'd have had to give some serious thought to the experience issue. Good luck with your surgery, I know you're going to love it.

Green Bottle???? Share with the class!

WELL ITS ME AGAINST THE GREEN BOTTLE!!! THAT ONE, YES IT MAKES YOU CRING! THE TASTE YOU CANT GET OUT UF YOUR MOUTH NO MATTER WHAT!!! HUGGING MR.TOLIT!!!!!!!!!!!!YUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SURGERY TOMMROW!

kay

Just a thought, but you seem to be one of the higher BMI patients (at least of people I've seen posting here). They may have thought the pics would be really good for before/after shots on the website or something? Also, you all should say which nurse did the back massage - it may be just the one nurse!!!

A couple of questions to other bandsters about my post-op experience at OCC, just out of curiousity:

1) Before my first walk around the clinic after surgery, my nurse gave me a 5-10 minute neck and back massage. The other two fellow bandsters that day reported not getting the massage. Was this just something that individual nurse does for her patients?

2) After dressing and walking out to the lobby the morning after surgery (waiting for the ride back to the hotel), several photos were taken of me, first posing with the after-care nurses, then a photo with Mrs. Ortiz. The male surgical nurse took the photos. I never asked what the photos were for, but the other two bandsters were not photographed as I was, nor were any of the bandsters the prior day.

Again, the questions have just been in the back of my head for the last few weeks, as I think back to my surgical experience. Anyone else have either experience?

Just curious.

A lot of people experience an initial "de-fill" because air escapes from the band after your first fill, actually reducing your restriction. You may find that at your december fill you no longer have a 4.2 fill. But that usually only happens after the first fill.

The exact same thing happened to me. I was starving the day after surgery. I tried so hard to just do liquids but after about 5 days after surgery, I would eat some mashed potatos. I had no restriction whatsoever. I lost 7 lbs the 1st week and that was sheer will power because I was starving. The 2nd week I only lost 2 lbs because the mashed pot. and other soft foods won the battle. By the time I got to week 3 with no restriction, it was over. I was starving. I couldnt eat another bite of soup or v8, I felt totally healed as if I never had surgery. I begged them at the OCC to please let me have a fill at 4 weeks ( a dr. in Nashville will give fills after 3 weeks surgery but he is not fond of MX patients and charges a fortune for a fill and it is not under fluro). The OCC would not do a fill sooner. I know the dangers of getting a fill too soon but just a little fill I think would have helped.

I finally talked them into a fill at 5 weeks because of the airfares going up for thanksgiving. My surgery was on 10/09 and by the time I had my 1st fill on Nov. 14 I had gained back 4 pounds. Very depressing. 5 weeks after surgery and I was down 5 lbs. The fill went well. I got 4.2 in the vg band. I thought finally this is going to work. The flight home from TJ was miserable. The barium gave me gas so bad I thought I was in labor and they wouldnt turn off the seat belt sign becuase of turb. Not sure what the flight attend could have done about it but I ignored her when she said I couldnt get up. I must have gone to the restroom 15 times during the flight but everytime I got back to my seat my stomach filled up with air again. Because it is a 4 hour flight my next fill is going to be here in my town. I found a dr. who doesnt charge an arm and a leg.

Anyway, after the fill, I did the liquids for one day and couldnt eat much for about 5 days. i lost 7 lbs that week and I was so happy. That put me at a total loss of 12 lbs. Then the restriction was gone. The 2nd week after the fill I have gained the 7 lbs back. I struggle with will power daily. My stomach growls so bad it is uncomfortable. I cant deal with the hunger. The dr in my town wants me to wait 2 weeks before coming in. He likes you to wait 4 weeks between fills. This has got to get better. I know they say it will take 2 -3 fills for this to work and I am trying to be patient. i do know that Inamed says that only 1% will feel restriction after surgery. My next fill is Dec 15. I guess we'll see.

I hope you will have good luck after your 1st fill. Thanks for letting me vent.

Joyce

Part of the reason we are getting more spam is because we are trying to get our forum "out there". We are doing more advertising for our forum so it pops up easily on a web search. I am working closely with our webmaster to see if we can block IP addresses. We do block spammer names, but they just get a new name. Please don't desert us!! Then the spammers win.

Lori,

Is there any way to require a new user to wait for a password to be sent to their e-mail address before they can log in? That way at least we know it's an actual person who has to take the time to check their e-mail, then log in and change their password to one of their choosing before posting.

That little bit of hastle might really cut down on SPAM posts.

I am just starting to research the Lap Band. Last year I went in and had all the test done for the Gastric Bypass but was scared because of the altering it does to the body. I am leaning towards the Lap Band. I was just wanting some input of the pre and post experiences.

We can probably all give you the lo-down, but my suggestion is to buy "Lap-Band for Life." And not just because Dr. Ortiz wrote it. I bought the book before I knew anything about him and it was such a fabulous source of information on all steps of banding, from the first step through life after the band.

Most stores don't have it in stock, but you can have it delivered to your local borders / B&N or you can order it through amazon, etc. As far as I'm concerned, it's a must have.

Hey ROO - I am sorry to hear of your luck? we all like ot have insurance but sometimes when it comes to these procedures it's more apain in the a$$ - have you thought about maybe contacting Lori Becky to see if she can check with Dr. Ortiz to seeif possibly he may have trained or knows of these MD's? Just a thought

I have thought about that and very well may. Right now I'm trying to work with my insurance company and see if I can get them to add more lap-band qualified surgeons, but I know that will be like pulling teeth!

I've spent the better part of the past 9 months going through the process. Went to Scripps Weight Loss Center. Did all the pre-op requirements. Got my form saying I'm sane and talked to the dietician. Then I find out that my insurance won't cover the surgery no matter what.

So I find Dr. Ortiz. I research until I can't find anything I haven't already learned and then I go down to TJ and tour the clinic and speak with Dr. Ortiz. I'm completely comfortable with this choice and know that he's one of the best.

Then, a week or two ago, I found out that we are switching to Cigna and that their HMO covers the Lap-Band. Joyous singing is heard throughout the land!

Yesterday I went to the insurance change meeting and found the list of bariatric surgeons covered under the HMO plan.

I researched every one of them within 80 miles (9 in total). The most experienced surgeon has done 100 lap-band procedures. One of them brags on his website about his 4% complication rate (with the US average being around 12-14%). I'm just thinking that Dr. Ortiz's rate is less then 1% and now I wish I didn't have insurance!

I can't actually afford to spend $10,000 and the relief of having to come up with 10% instead was wonderful. But now I'm scared and frustrated because most of the surgeons covered still only perform Gastric Bypass or Reux-en-Y.

My choices are:

George Mueller, MD, who has performed 2 lap-band surgeries as of September

Milton Owens, MD, who has performed approximately 100 and is my best option at this point

Kyle B. Potts, MD, whose office is just beginning to offer the lap-band procedure

Not exactly jumping for joy at my options

The surgeons I was working with before Dr. Ortiz aren't covered under Cigna. Their counterparts at Scripps Mercy are, but they only do the Roux-en-Y.

GRRRR. I think it's super mean that the insurance will cover the procedure but not a qualified doctor to do it.

I e-mailed them today and whined, but am feeling really frustrated and choking in red tape.

Hi there! In order to PM someone, click on their user ID. It will take you to their info page. If you look on the right side you will see an option to "Send a Personal Message" or "Send and E-mail." Click on whichever one you want and start typing away!

Beth

Hello all!

This is my first time on this site.

I would like to tell what I really like this project "Support / General Discussions".

I've been reading it for a while, and I have learned so much here.

So, I decided to try my luck asking a few questions...

How can you IM, PM or whatever you call it to certain members? .

I'd like to ask more questions about "Support / General Discussions".

By the way, nice domain name www.lapbandforum.com.

Just wanted to let everyone know that he updated this morning. Just be prepared for an "OMGWTF you can't stop there!" moment, lol.

http://www.wcmessenger.com/losingbattle/2006-11-19.shtml