BrandNewDawn

I agree with crazycoolbutterfly. I got really annoyed by your friend's behavior while reading your story as well. When you accepted her invitation to be in her wedding, you thought the wedding was going to be local. She changed the wedding location. You told her you were concerned about the financials from the start, she made no offer to help. Now, I know I am old fashioned but when my best friend wanted me to be in her wedding, she paid for my air plane ticket and my dress. I know, that was 20 years ago but since when is the wedding party expected to bear the burden of the cost of a "destination wedding?" Isn't the bride/bride's family supposed to pay for the wedding still? Wow, what a break for the bride/bride's family when that little tradition got tossed out! First she tells you that you will not need to buy a dress and then she tells you she wants you to spend $200 and then cuts you out of the bachelorette party as well as the rehearsal. Are you sure this woman really even wants you to be in her wedding? I think you should cancel your ticket and get a refund as well. Email or text message your regrets, send a card and a gift. Do you really want to spend that much money to have a bad time? You are up to $900 bucks on plane ticket and dress and you have not rented a car or paid for a hotel or food and you are already up to your eyeballs in resentment toward her. Perhaps if you talk to her you could work something out but right now, I really don't see this ending well for you and it could spell the end of your friendship with your friend. Good luck with your decision. You should do what is best for you. She made her plans without giving any thought or consideration to you or to any of the east coast friends and family. Do not feel guilty if you decide not to go. You have the absolute right to say no. Not being able to afford the trip right now IS a good reason and it IS a responsible decision. Dawn

Vangirl, Every one is different when it comes to first fills. Some people end up feeling restriction and others do not until their second fill or even later. Believe me, I and others can testify that those small increments can be a big difference. I had to have 0.5 removed from my band because that was the difference between the restriction I have now and not being able to drink water. Do not lose hope. You will get there. Anyway, I wish you good luck with your next fill. Let us know how it turns out for you. And ckiki As to the VG band and fills, once again, everyone is different but when I got a first fill of 1.4 cc's, my husband got a first fill of 2.5cc's in his VG band. He has had good restriction with three fills only and I think he is at 4.5cc's now so you just never know. Now, my first fill was more than 25% of capacity but he quickly caught up and surpassed me on his second fill and he is now at almost 50% capacity (he might have 5.5 which would put him over 50% capacity) on three fills. Good luck to you as well. Dawn

The only thing that I feel self-conscious about is eating around people who do not know that I am banded. I was at my step-son's wedding reception and the dinner was absolutely luscious and I took about 4 bites and I was done. (I should have skipped the appetizer). So, I always wonder if people think I am weird because I don't drink anything at all and I barely eat anything. But, really, most people probably do not notice at all. I always take my food home for another meal. Oh, and I miss my after dinner coffee. PB-ing sucks in my opinion, I hate it and try to avoid it. Dawn

Yes, you may be getting CM (centimeters) confused with CC (cubic centimeters). If you have the 10 CM band, it holds 4 CC's. If you have the VG band, it is 13 CM in length and it holds 10 CC's in volume. Regardless of the length of the band or the volume, they both close to approximately 1/2 inch when fully filled. It may take longer to reach an optimal fill level if you have the larger band (more fills) but either band will get you to the same place eventually. The doctors decide which band to place once they are inside and have a look around so to speak. More fat around the stomach or just larger in general (men) get the larger band. My husband has the larger band, I have the smaller band even though I was more overweight than he was. If your card says VG, it is the 10CC band. If your card says 10CM it is the 4 CC band. If you cannot find your card, you can email OCC and they will look it up and email the info back to you. Dawn

Dr. Miranda told my husband (he is also banded) that the average American diet has enough protein and that it was not really necessary to supplement protein. I use protein supplementing in the morning when my band is too tight for an ordinary breakfast. But, overall, I'm not a big fan. I really do not like the taste or texture of most protein drinks. Some other things I found out by doing a little research on line is that too much protein can be bad for your liver and kidneys, can promote vitamin and mineral deficiencies, especially calcium as the digestion of the protein leeches calcuim from you bones. That in turn increases your risk of osteoporosis. It can cause bad breath which seem insignificant next to bone loss and kidney disease. That said, I read that most doctors say you need 0.8 to 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight per day (about 7 grams per 20 pounds) so our requirements will change as we lose weight. Now, if you are a training athlete or a competitive body builder, your protein requirements will be different than the average person. Right now, I would need 64 grams but at goal (145) I would only need about 50-52. I have read a healthy range is 60-80 grams per day depending on your weight and activity level. Protein deficiency is rarely seen in the Western world because it is so easy for us to get protein. One article I read said that you could do all your supplementing with skim milk powder for the same results and for a lot less money than the pricey supplements most of us purchase (myself included). The next time I'm at the market, I think I will pick up a box of that powdered milk my Mom used to make me drink when I was a kid. I know it cannot taste as bad as some of the supplements I've tried. Dawn

Jenn, I found this on the web site for the National Association of Weight Loss Surgery (nawls) "If you drank alcohol before surgery, you are likely to want to resume drinking alcohol following surgery. Most surgeons recommend waiting one year after surgery. And it is in your best interest to understand the consequences of drinking alcohol before you do it. Alcohol is connected with weight regain, because alcohol has 7 calories per gram, while protein and vegetables have 4 calories per gram. Also, some people develop an addiction to alcohol after WLS, so be very cautious. Depending on your type of WLS, you may get drunker, quicker after surgery, which can cause health problems and put you in dangerous situations." Here is a link to the entire article if anyone is interested: http://www.nawls.com/public/333.cfm Interesting read. I think moderation is the key but the above information is good to know. Dawn

ckiki, I took my 11 and 9 years old sons with me for one of my fills. Now, they did not sit in the waiting room by themselves as their Dad was there too but they could have. I would think an 11 year old would be okay to sit in the waiting room by herself for the 15 minutes it takes you to get your fill. They might let her come in with you. They let me go in with my husband when he had his last fill, kids were not with us that time. Coming back across the border we took birth certificates and school picture ID/military dependent ID card. They did encourage us to get border crossing cards or passports if we were going to be taking our children across the border regularly but they are encouraging those anyway as the deadline is June 2009 for passports/passcards. I do not know why anyone would question you about bringing your daughter back into the US without permission from her father. Tijuana is a border town and a tourist destination, children travel there with their parents all the time. I would be more concerned about having the proper documentation birth. cert/picture ID. It might be best to check the government's website to see what they say about taking your children into/out of country. Better to be safe than to get detained at the border. http://travel.state.gov/travel/cbpmc/cbpmc_2223.html Dawn

Here is a link to an unban myth website about the 8 glasses a day myth. Not too computer savvy but I hope the link works. I'm all for drinking an adequate amount of water but all this arbitary 8 to 10 glasses a day has never made sense to me either. I live in a warm climate, I drink more in the summer when it is 110 outside than I do in the winter when it is 60 outside. That makes sense to me. I understand telling dieters to fill up on water. I do not understand why none of these water recommendations mention the 3 cups of milk I drink for calcuim or the cup of orange juice I drink for vitamin C. That's 4 cups of liquid right there. Why doesn't that count. What about the 2 cups of decaf coffee I drink. What about the water in my food. http://www.snopes.com/medical/myths/8glasses.asp Snowbird, I like your Yankee miser roots way of thinking. I'm a midwest girl myself. Raised by parents who were raised during the Great Depression and they passed that use it up, wear it out, make it do, do without, waste not, want not mentality on to me. I hope frugality does make a comeback! That being said, it does sound like a cool, high tech gadget. And the different colors are pretty too! I would like it even more if it somehow could actually make me drink the water I put in there. I have trouble getting water in throughout the day because if it gets too hot, I won't drink it and I'm always forgetting my bottle in the car. I need one that reminds me to take it with me or one that keeps my water cool all day long, even when locked in a 140 degree car! Cool gadget though! Love the blue one! Dawn

Yeah, same here. Driver's license and birth certificate to cross the border now, passports starting June 2009 (if they do not change it again). I had one border patrol officer give us a hard time about not having passports/passcards but usually we do not have any trouble. We walk through though, never tried driving across. I have the utmost respect for our border patrol and the difficult job they have securing our borders. I don't mind if they ask me questions concerning my right to legally enter the United States of America. Having a driver's license is not proof of citizenship. Calling a federal law enforcement officer a b*tch for doing her job...well, I just do not know what to say about that. Is it just me or has the whole world gone crazy? Okay, I'm done "venting" now. As to fills, I was told they were $100 dollars for the flouro. I was never told that blind fills were available for free. There is going to be some bad information floating around, it is always best to check with the OCC before. They usually send me an email with the cost details/method of payment before I go down. Dawn

Eswack Hi, I am not qualified to give medical. You should call/see your doctor about this. One of my boys developed yellowish whites of his eyes at birth and the doctor said it would clear up but if your skin starts turning yellowish, that could be jaundice which if left untreated can cause liver damage. You should at least call OCC and ask them about it. Good luck. Hope everything turns out fine. Dawn

Will, I so agree with Chad on this one. This was NOT a one person deal. If you have not been following the forum day in and day out for at least the past 2 months, then you probably missed most of it. The Shoutbox was being used as a tool, although not everyone on the shoutbox was guilty of this. The PM's, well, I do not get why anyone would tolerate being sent rude or crude messages by another member, essentially a stranger. I would report it immediately and then block that person from sending me any more messages. Some people seem to thrive on engaging in battles with these types of people though. I have seen it on other forums although not to the degree that I have seen it here lately. I would not want the job of moderating this forum. I hardly used the PM system and I did not participate in the shoutbox and I will not miss it. If these features cannot be used responsibly by ALL forum members, then I do not blame the moderators for removing them and I fully support any decision that will get this forum back to civility, the sooner the better. Dawn

SheRee, My band is 10 cm (centimeters). That is about 4 inches for us non-metric system based Americans. My band holds 4 cc's saline, same as mililiters I think. (Any chemists in the house?) My husband's band is 13 cm (centimeters). That is about 5 and 1/4 inches. His band holds 10 cc's saline. I think the centimeters refers to the closed circumference of the band. Anyway, either of those measurements makes a pretty small circle when closed and that is before being filled with any saline. Fully filled, Dolittle said in one of his posts that they end up being the same. I think he said about 1/2 inch. They should have given you a card with your band size on it. If you do not have it, you can email them and they will tell you. I know that because I misplaced my card and had to email them. I found it later. The doctors make the decision during surgery. I guess they need to see what we look like on the inside. Hope that helps. Dawn

Judi, Where did you get your information? At OCC, I was told to stop drinking 30 minutes BEFORE you eat and that you can BEGIN drinking again 1 hour after your meal. That adds up to 4 hours and 30 minutes of not drinking with your meals. The sip,sip, sip recommendation is for after surgery because it is usually hard to drink large amounts of water right after surgery. Also, I find it difficult to drink cold beverages in the morning but I usually do not have a problem with warm beverages like coffee. Once you get a fill, drinking with a meal is usually uncomfortable. I do not drink with my meals because it hurts to drink and eat at the same time. Hopefully, others will respond as well. Dawn

To Everyone, HAPPY NEW YEAR. Dawn

Kristy I am pretty sure that they MEANT 6 weeks. And, even then, I think it is more of a case by case thing. My husband has had fills less than 6 weeks apart at OCC. Dawn

I agree you need to have your band looked at under flouro. It does not sound like your band has slipped but continuing to eat past the point of feeling full may cause your upper pouch to stretch. You do not want that to happen. It sounds to me like your band may be too tight and that it has been for a long time. I sympathize with your feeling of frustration at not being able to eat. While the healthy food will not stay down, it seems like all the junk food causes no problem whatsoever. But, you will have a hard time reaching your weight goal eating only what you can eat if those things are all the things we are not supposed to be eating. (i. e. eating/drinking around the band) Throwing up everyday is not normal. It is not good for you or for your band. Even if you do not slip your band, it can harm your esophagus and it is not good for the enamel on your teeth. And, pain when you eat is not normal either. If you think you need help with your food issues then you should see someone, another poster recommended Overeaters Anonymous. Good luck. I wish you success in 2009. Let us know how you are doing. Dawn

Sarah, Since you are only three weeks out from surgery, it will be hard to know how "tight" you will be by the time of your scheduled first fill. Much like you, three weeks out from surgery, I had trouble with chicken (I still do) and beef and fish, really, I had trouble with just about everything I tried to eat. But...by the time of my first fill three weeks later, I had no restriction. You are still healing and could still have some swelling. I understand your concern about not being able to get adequate protein. That is why so many of us supplement protein when it is hard to eat. If I vomit, I try not to eat anything else for several hours just to let things settle down a bit. That is when the protein shakes come into play or back to creamy soups. One trick is making sure the meat that you eat is especially moist. Dry chicken breast does not work for me anymore at all. But I can manage most things cooked all day in a crock pot and I like shredded pork and beef. Good luck. It is a learning experience. Dawn

Jazzy, Thank you for posting the 1/3 of what you used to eat rule. I was told this when I was banded and I think Dr. Ortiz says it in one of his videos. I was told again at my first and second fill, as was my husband. I told Doctor Acosta about the 1/4 cup guideline on the forum and he told me the same thing, not enough food to keep you full. Also, I have never had anyone tell me anything about calories. Did he tell you that you should only be eating 1,200 calories a day? Is that from Dr. Ortiz's book? All I was ever told was 1/3 of what you used to eat. Same for my husband. Anyway, I hope you get good restriction. Dr. So told me liquids for 3 days after my second fill (the one I had to have removed) but he let my husband eat after his second fill. Everyone is different I guess. Great information. Thanks for posting. Dawn

Firecracker I have had two fills but I only have 1.4 cc's in my band. I had 1.9 cc's after my second fill but ended up having .5 cc's removed because it was too tight. I might go for another fill in January. I do not know. I have decent restriction still but my weight loss is super slow, only about 2 pounds a month now. I might need to add more exercise and I am thinking about seeing a nutritionists to evaluate my diet. I do not know when your surgery was but I did not start feeling hungry after surgery until the end of week two. But, by the end of the 6 weeks, I could eat without restriction. I do not know why I have restriction with less than 2 cc's in my band. I have the 10 CM/4cc band. Everyone's band experience is going to be as different and as unique as they are. There is no one size fits all for lap band restriction. Sorry I can not be of more help as to when you should schedule a fill. I was addressing more your question about no fill/one fill. I have lost half the weight that I need to lose with 1.4cc's in my band. Dawn

Way to go Julie! Congrats to you. What a great Christmas present. Dawn

I know you were just kidding about the producers but... The Farmer's Market by the CBS studios. I have been there 2 times and have seen stars both times just sitting drinking coffee and talking/meeting with others. I have heard that they like to walk over for breakfast and lunch as it is really close. Last time, I had breakfast a few tables away from James Woods, another time we were a few tables away from Kelsey Grammer. Even if you do not see stars, it is a fun place to visit in Hollywood. And yes, producers, directors, script writers, etc. all hang out there. Dawn

I am not a big fan of protein shakes either. I have "issues" with the taste and the texture. However, I did try at the suggestion of another poster on this forum a while back a protein powder called UNJURY. Just Google UNJURY and you will find it. They offer only a few flavors and one is chicken soup which taste like chicken broth and is a welcome change. I have tried the chocolate and the strawberry sorbet which were both good but my favorite is the unflavored. The texture is smooth. I am going to try the vanilla next time I order. You can order samples of each to try if you want to. There is some good information on the site as well. Dawn

1. Name: Dawn 2. Location: San Diego County, CA 3. Age: 49 4. Band Date: 03-17-2008 St. Patrick's Day 5. Married: Yes 6. Children of the human or furry kind: 2 sons ages 11 and 9, 1 step son and 1 step daughter both adults 7. Hobby(ies): Reading, Quilting, 8. Work: Full-time Mom and Wife 9. What was the deciding factor(s) on getting banded: Unable to lose weight AND keep it off. 10. Interesting factoid: My husband is banded too!

Hi Pam, We live locally too. My husband and I do not drive in TJ. It is crazy, hectic and they drive very different down there than they do here. We usually park in one of the many parking lots on the American side and walk across then get a cab. Most of the drivers know how to get to OCC but write down the address (or use a business card like Jazzy) on a card to show them. I also write down the phone number of the OCC "just in case" the card isn't enough to get me there. I speak next to no Spanish and some of the cab drivers we have had speak very little english. We also take 1's and 5's. It's a good idea to have small bills. Good luck and have fun. We always go straight there and straight back and it takes about an hour and a half to 2 hours. Parking costs 8 dollars. The cab ride is usually 5 dollars each way (before tip).

Good for you! Three and a half years is a long time to wait, work and save. You should be proud of yourself for your commitment to your goal. You really showed him how much you wanted this surgery and how hard you were willing to work for it. Keep up that determined attitude and you will do great! Congratulations.