Alana

So I just looked at my calendar and I realized that I have 11 days before my surgery. I'm frantically trying to put together a packing list of things to bring (don't want to go overboard) and get my affairs in order before I leave. These past 2 weeks have been difficult for me. (Some female issues coming up, so beware!) I recently was told by my gynecologist that I would need to get on birth control because my periods were just too far in between (like 3 months at a time). I was tested for everything under the sun and nothing came back, so he just said it was amenorhea (absence of menstruation) and put me on the Yaz. He warned me that my first period would be tough because it would be essentially 3 periods at once. So about 2 weeks after starting BC, the mother of all periods hit. I'm on my 11th day of it and there is no sign of it letting up any time soon. Needless to say, this has completely thrown my body out of whack and made all of my pre-op diet efforts null and void. I gained back all the weight I had lost (I'm sure my water weight was off the charts!) and I just felt like a beached whale all the time. It was really discouraging, because 1 day it would say I lost 7 lbs then the next day it'll say I gained 8 then lost 4, gained 1, lost 6, gained 3....ARGHHHH! I have to lose 12 lbs by surgery date. My starting weight was 240, so I need to get down to 228. As or yesterday I was at 234. I've notified Dr. Miranda about my situation and asked for some consideration if I'm not able to lose it all by then. I will try my best, but I am TERRIFIED I will get turned away. I've spent so much money and effort getting this all together, I will be heartbroken if it doesn't go through. Surprisingly enough, these last few weeks of dieting haven't been hard and I haven't really been tempted to cheat - if I do, I make good choices. So I know if this all didn't happen, I would have lost the required amount of weight. I've decided to kick it into high gear and do the Atkins diet for the remainder of the time. I've lost a good amount of weight on it before, so hopefully that will get me in the clear. I know it's not the best option, but I really don't know what else to do. I've added the Chromium supplement that Dr. Miranda recommended (really hard to swallow, by the way! it always gets stuck going down) so hopefully that'll help. My sister got me a week pass to her gym so I'm going to go every day next week and do cardio. Cross your fingers, bandsters! Sorry this was such a long post, had to get this off my chest. I want this to happen more than anything. I'm 22 years old, I've been overweight since I was 10, no other program has worked for me and I want something to help me 1) achieve permanent weight loss and 2) prevent any obesity related diseases. I've been lucky enough to dodge diabetes and high blood pressure, but I don't know how long that will last without this...

My surgery is scheduled for May 9th, too! My mom and I will arrive on the 8th. We are Alana and Pat - can't wait to see you there!!

Can't wait to see you ladies there! Alana

Yay, good luck!! I'm sure all your hard work paid off. I'll be thinking about you!

I hate to put this here in your post, Michelle, but is anyone else having trouble posting new topics? I keep getting a Forbidden message each time I try. Adding replies doesn't seem to be affected..

Welcome, Dusty! It'll be nice to have another male opinion on here. Hope everything goes well with the seminar, keep up updated! Alana

I was just going to ask if anyone chewed up the food and then spit it out, just to get the chewing sensation under control. I know there are times when I drink my Slim Fasts that I just want something hot to chew on, but know that I'm not actually hungry for it. I hopefully will not have to do this, but just in case! Alana

***I wanted to post this here, too, in case you haven't read the General discussion area*** Hi Punkgirl!! I'm getting banded May 9th, too! I'm 22, so I'm sure we'll get along great! I have had difficulty with my pre-op diet as well. I was having issues with having a period (sorry if it's TMI!) and hadn't had 1 in 3 months. My doc put me on birth control pills to regulate and now I'm having the mother of all periods - basically 3 at once. So my weight is up and down and going crazy. I've notified Dr. Miranda and Dr. Ortiz about this, though, so I'm hoping they'll take that into consideration. My mom and I arrive May 9th, so can't wait to meet you! Who are you travelling with? I haven't had too much trouble with the pre-op diet - if I feel like I NEED to snack on something, I'll usually have a jello or a sugar free popsicle. I've also cut out sodas and that has helped. I started at 240 and she wanted me to at least lose 12 lbs - Monday I was at 236, now I'm at 234. so we're pretty close in weight range. I have a wedding to go to on May 31st and I asked the couple what they were serving and thankfully, there is a soup I can have. Just check the restaurant and see if they have any soups or soft foods. PLEASE email me if you have any questions or just need encouragment! It is apk726@hotmail.com - that goes for anyone!

Hi Punkgirl!! I'm getting banded May 9th, too! I'm 22, so I'm sure we'll get along great! I have had difficulty with my pre-op diet as well. I was having issues with having a period (sorry if it's TMI!) and hadn't had 1 in 3 months. My doc put me on birth control pills to regulate and now I'm having the mother of all periods - basically 3 at once. So my weight is up and down and going crazy. I've notified Dr. Miranda and Dr. Ortiz about this, though, so I'm hoping they'll take that into consideration. My mom and I arrive May 9th, so can't wait to meet you! Who are you travelling with? I haven't had too much trouble with the pre-op diet - if I feel like I NEED to snack on something, I'll usually have a jello or a sugar free popsicle. I've also cut out sodas and that has helped. I started at 240 and she wanted me to at least lose 12 lbs - Monday I was at 236, now I'm at 234. so we're pretty close in weight range. I have a wedding to go to on May 31st and I asked the couple what they were serving and thankfully, there is a soup I can have. Just check the restaurant and see if they have any soups or soft foods. PLEASE email me if you have any questions or just need encouragment! It is apk726@hotmail.com - that goes for anyone!

Hi Kathryn, Welcome to the forum! Let me first say that while I haven't been banded yet, I can't imagine that being in extreme pain is normal. Most people talk about some discomfort the days following surgery, but this sounds a little more serious. Have you contacted your doctor yet? Please do and keep us updated! I'll pray everything is alright. Alana P.S. I hope to visit Ireland in the next few years - maybe we can plan a little get together if I visit where you live!

Wow, congrats! What a fun trip that will be! I had a similar experience yesterday, though not quite as big. I won tickets on the radio to go see Elton John tonight. I can't wait! We only get major performers in Tallahassee every once in a while, so this is pretty big!

I understand your concerns, my mom and I opted to stay an extra night. We're arriving Thursday morning on the 8th and leaving Sunday morning on the 11th. We just both felt more comfortable in allowing me another day to rest and recover and be near the doctors before the long flight back to Florida. Good luck!!

I think it's important to remember that every person is unique and everyone is not guaranteed the same results or experience. Everyone will have their own experience and unfortunately, some of those may be bad or unsuccessful. With this kind of thing, you just have to make the decision for yourself, be committed to the decision, and hope everything turns out for the best. I hope you don't allow this to discourage you from making the decision to be banded, but I understand your aprehension. And yes, it's also important to remember Dr. Ortiz' wonderful track record - I can't imagine having this done by anyone else! Alana

maybe it's because I haven't been banded yet or can tell how long that band is in the bottom photo, but that looks really long!! where does all that long cord go or am I misinterpreting the length? thanks for the pics, Michelle - great info! Alana

everytime I've ever seen crawfish, it was fried, so you may want to be careful if it is. I can't imagine that would be too easy to digest when you get back into eating solid foods.

I can't believe it's so soon! I just read up about the comfortable clothes, so I'm guessing jeans probably wouldn't be the most comfortable. I think I'll go to Target or Lane Bryant and buy one final cotton sweat suit to be comfy on the flight back. Can't wait to see you ladies there! My mom and I fly in late morning on the 8th. You see my picture and she'll be the impossibly tiny woman next to me. (5'2" and 107 lbs! How did that happen!? Am I adopted! LoL) Alana

I spoke to Dr. Miranda about bc pills and she didn't say anything about getting off of them prior to surgery. Alana

Name and Location: Alana from Tallahassee, FL Age: 22 Gender: F Band Date: May 9th Height: 4'10 Highest weight: 240 Current Weight: 232 Goal Weight: 130

I spoke to Dr. Miranda on Monday because I had some concerns that I wasn't losing enough weight. I mentioned this post to her and how it had made me re-think taking the Alli pills to help lose weight and she said those were actually safe, because all they do is help block the absorption of fat- there's no bad stuff like speed in them. I'm sure they're also safer because they're approved by the FDA. She recommended the Chromium Picolinate more than the Alli, but said it was still perfectly safe. Just thought I would post this in case anyone else had this in mind. Alana

thanks, Jena! great link!

I don't have type II diabetes, but a co-worker of mine just recently read an article about how some doctors are recommending the Lap Band as a way to cure type II diabetes. I searched on msnbc and found it. CHICAGO - A new study gives the strongest evidence yet that obesity surgery can cure diabetes. Patients who had surgery to reduce the size of their stomachs were five times more likely to see their diabetes disappear over the next two years than were patients who had standard diabetes care, according to Australian researchers. Most of the surgery patients were able to stop taking diabetes drugs and achieve normal blood tests. “It’s the best therapy for diabetes that we have today, and it’s very low risk,” said the study’s lead author, Dr. John Dixon of Monash University Medical School in Melbourne, Australia. The patients had stomach band surgery, a procedure more common in Australia than in the United States, where gastric bypass surgery, or stomach stapling, predominates. Gastric bypass is even more effective against diabetes, achieving remission in a matter of days or a month, said Dr. David Cummings, who wrote an accompanying editorial in the journal but was not involved in the study. “We have traditionally considered diabetes to be a chronic, progressive disease,” said Cummings of the University of Washington in Seattle. “But these operations really do represent a realistic hope for curing most patients.” Diabetes experts who read the study said surgery should be considered for some obese patients, but more research is needed to see how long results last and which patients benefit most. Surgery risks should be weighed against diabetes drug side effects and the long-term risks of diabetes itself, they said. The diabetes benefits of weight-loss surgery were known, but the Australian study in Wednesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association is the first of its kind to compare diabetes in patients randomly assigned to surgery or standard care. Scientists consider randomized studies to yield the highest-quality evidence. The study involved 55 patients, so experts will be looking for results of larger experiments under way. 'New way of thinking about diabetes' “Few studies really qualify as being a landmark study. This one is,” said Dr. Philip Schauer, who was not involved in the Australian research but leads a Cleveland Clinic study that is recruiting 150 obese people with diabetes to compare two types of surgery and standard medical care. “This opens an entirely new way of thinking about diabetes.” Obesity is a major risk factor for diabetes, and researchers are furiously pursuing reasons for the link as rates for both climb. What’s known is that excess fat can cause the body’s normal response to insulin to go haywire. Researchers are investigating insulin-regulating hormones released by fat and the role of fatty acids in the blood. In the Australian study, all the patients were obese and had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes during the past two years. Their average age was 47. Half the patients underwent a type of surgery called laparoscopic gastric banding, where an adjustable silicone cuff is installed around the upper stomach, limiting how much a person can eat. Both groups lost weight over two years; the surgery patients lost 46 pounds on average, while the standard-care patients lost an average of 3 pounds. Blood tests showed diabetes remission in 22 of the 29 surgery patients after two years. In the standard-care group, only four of the 26 patients achieved that goal. The patients who lost the most weight were the most likely to eliminate their diabetes. Both patient groups learned about low-fat, high-fiber diets and were encouraged to exercise. Both groups could meet with a health professional every six weeks for two years. The death rate for stomach band surgery, which can cost $17,000 to $20,000, is about 1 in 1,000. There were only minor complications in the study. Stomach stapling has a 2 percent death rate and costs $20,000 to $30,000. In the United States, surgeons perform more than 100,000 obesity surgeries each year. The American Diabetes Association is interested in the findings. The group revises its recommendations each fall, taking new research into account. “There is a growing body of evidence that bariatric surgery is an effective tool for managing diabetes,” said Dr. John Buse of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill, the association’s president for medicine and science. “It’s just a question of how effective is it, for what spectrum of patients, over what period of time and at what cost? Not all those questions have been answered yet.” Medical devices used in the study were provided by the manufacturers, but the companies had no say over the study’s design or its findings, Dixon said. *for full view of the article on their site, plus some graphs and charts, go to: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22787261/from/ET/ Hope this helps!! Alana

Hey Michelle, quick question for you. How do you add your photo next to your posts? I've tried so many times and my photo never shows up! Argh! I'm pretty computer literate, so this is frustrating me that I can't figure it out! Alana

Hi Sufina! I'll be arriving on the 8th, so I'll probably see you there! Alana

thanks for the info, guys!

I set my goal weight at 130, because 1) I felt it was actually attainable to lose 90 lbs and 2) it just sounded like a healthy, reasonable weight. I'm only 4'10, so I think the recommended weight is like 90-104 lbs, which is ridiculous and I don't think I'd ever want to be that skinny. I am Greek, I have hips and curves, and 130 just seems to fit me. I hope! great topic, Michelle! :cheerleader: