pacificnw

Sometimes it's best not to tell everyone- get the time off from work for "personal reasons". No need to explain your surgery. Family and friends don't need to have an opinion. It's your decision only. It's money well spent and it's a pretty minor procedure- why all the "I'm afraid you'll die" talk? Have they read horror stories? Another reason not to explain or justify it to anyone. I told about 3 people I was having surgery and after 8 months most people don't know...I only have told those who asked "How did you lose weight?". I don't volunteer the information to anyone. It's just cleaner. Good luck to you and please keep us updated!

Don't worry about asking the doctors to double check- they understand. And we all get fixed on the numbers- and there is the tendency to want to get "your money's worth" by getting a tad bigger fill. I had that experience and ended up flying back to Mexico for an unfill the next week. I had too much of a good thing. I had another small fill, and again, needed 0.1 cc taken out. It made a huge difference. Now I only have 0.8 cc in my 4cc band and it seems to doing OK. I am tempted to get another fill but it's nice to be able to eat w/o it hurting. I'll stay status quo. I traveled with another person who had a much bigger fill than mine on that first day. I had 1.5cc (and ended up needing 0.5 taken out the next week) and she had 2.5 put in the first time and was fine. We're all different- you can't compare fill numbers. As for the doctors at Dr. Ortiz office- I trust their judgement. If they say a fill is the right level, I trust them. They have filled thousands of patients and they're the best at what they do. Julie Portland

I have a huge amount of size 18 and 20 slacks, nice work clothes. A lot of crisp cotton blouses in 1x. A bunch of nice knit shirts, the cotton with a touch of spandex for fit, these are 2X and 3X. I have some dress clothes. Huge amount of casual shofts in 18-20. So how does this work? You email me with speficifcs and i send it?

Hi there. I'm from Portland and had surg with Dr. Ortiz last October. It was a good experience. Finding support at home has been difficult but I read the blogs for most of my information. As for local doctors in Portland, Dr. Kelly Fitzpatrick is the doctor who works in Portland two weekends a month. I needed an urgent unfill and she was able to see me and was very proficient at accessing the port. She has been doing this for ages. Just google her name with lap band after it and her website will pop right up. I have returned to Mexico for most of my fills/unfills.

I was not doubting your experience, only hoping people would not think it's Dr. Ortiz who was your surgeon. And you're welcome to stay here, post and read. It's a great place to learn. Please let us know how you're doing. Hugs, Pacific NW

Annie, I've read this story on other blogs. Since it's not Dr. Ortiz, you should make that very clear at the first of your letter. Unfortuntely, this can happen with any laparoscopy surgery- gallbladder, etc. I hope you're doing better.

Regarding the liquid diet for 3 weeks- it's not bad. I found some tomato and roasted red pepper soup (in a carton, sold at Trader Joes and other stores) and it was delicious. Liquid yogurt drinks were great though some were too thick and had to be diluted with a little OJ. I also got a "magic bullet" and would liquify soups like clam chowder or even beef stew. It's thick and very filling yet still a liquid. I only did that during the 3rd week. It's an investment to go slow and follow the rules. ALSO: Try the liquid Slim Fast drinks- very good. I only got chocolate (why bother with anything else?). ALso I got a big container of Michelle Champion Protein powder. The chocolate honestly tastes like chocolate milk. I'm made several servings and keep it in the fridge. It did help with hunger. I was OK until the last few days when it got tough. Hang in there. You will be fine. And maybe being on liquids over Christmas will help- you won't be tempted with all the goodies. Keep us posted.

I had my first fill on Dec 6- flew down to San Diego, met by Fransisco and went right to the clinic. I was in the fill room within 20 minutes of arriving at the clinic and saw Dr. Acosta. He was great and did the fill effortlessly. I brought a friend and we walked back to the Hotel Lucerna where we spent the night. I think next time I may just fly down for the day- I have such confidence in the OCC- I don't want someone messing up my band. I've heard horror stories from people who went to doctors who are not too experienced. No thanks. I hope this first fill last awhile but I do plan to return to OCC for the next one, whenever I need that. You're in good hands here! [Just got back from a fill trip to the OCC. My wife had her first fill (1.8cc's) and she did good, I had a tweaking fill, we added .5cc's to my 1.8cc's for a total of 2.3cc's. .......

You can't go wrong with Dr. Ortiz and the clinic in TJ. Several people in my group went alone and did just fine. The driver picks patients up at the airport, you have a ride to and from the clinic and then back to the airport. I had surgery on Monday and flew home on Weds and did very well. And if you check out this clinic, you won't find a better group of doctors. The day after surgery 3 of us rented a taxi and had him take us to the beach, where we walked for an hour. I went with a friend but we quickly befriended someone who had come alone. He'll be fine there on his own. PS I am returning to TJ for my first fill in early Dec. I'll let you know how it went!