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hi i wjus wonderin have u had surgery done

So a arrived at the clinic yesterday for my pre-op exam. and since i was fasting and they had extra room, my mom and i both had it done a day before scheduled! very exciting, but at the same time scary becuase it came on fast quick at once, i was kind of overwhelmed. but, all is doing well, my stomach hurts here and there, and everyonce in a while if i breath real deep, my chest kinda hurts. probably air bubble that i need to walk off. it is really funny because my shirt keeps sticking to my yellow belly!

so all is doing well! THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR ALL OF THE SUPPORT! IT TRULEY HELPED A LOT!

OK, so i am leaving very early in the morning tomorrow! ( around 4 am'ish) THIS IS IT!! my pre-op diet has gone very well! i have lost all the weight that i need to loose, (nearly 20 lbs, wearing light clothes!) but i am still worried that i will get bloated and such after the flight... we are going from the airport to the clinic for the pre-op exams. This is very nerve racking, but i know that time wasted worrying is time not spent on doing something useful.. If i can, i will post again from the clinic tomorrow, if not, i will post as soon as i can! thank you everybody for all of the support! it is amazing knowing that there are so many people that i can turn to with questions and concerns that have gone through this before!

Kelsey

Hello Kelsey

My name is Steve Nelson and I am also having surgery on Aug 8th. I am no longer 16, but I know how you feel because I have also always been heavy. I have tried all kinds of diets and "magic" pills and drinks, but there is no magic cure. As for your diet you should talk to Dr Miranda at OCC and she will give you a pre-op diet plan. She also e-mailed you some pre-op diet information. If you can get Dr Ortiz book before then that will give you a lot of info. I am buying it today, and I will take it with me to have him sign it. Well, I hope that this turns out OK because I am a computer illiterate and this is my first time to post anything, but I have been reading the forum off and on for a couple of months now. See you in TJ.

Thanks for the support Steve! my mom is also getting banded on the 8th with me, perhaps we will see you there!! CANT WAIT TILL TJ!!!

Welcome Kelsey!

I know you have alot of questions, we were all a little nervous and afraid before surgery. Have you read Dr. O's book "Lap band for Life"? It's a good book and can answer alot of questions. [i got mine from Amazon.com] Cassy is one of Dr.O's teenage patients and her story is in the book. Did you see her on the Oprah show? They're supposed to rerun the episode some time in August, look for it. She a very smart beautiful girl who's about 19 now and had wonderful success with the band. Her and her Mom post on here, very nice people.

I'm in my 40's, so I can't give you the teen angle of the surgery, but I will say that I wish I could have been banded at your age! It would have saved me from alot of crap.... I'm sure you know what I mean!

You'll be in the BEST hands with your surgery, I promise. If you have any questions, just post them, there are alot of wonderful people on this forum!!

Best wishes, Darlene

I have not gotten the chance to read through Dr. Ortiz's book yet. But i got the chance to glance through while i was staying with my aunt who not long ago had the same surgery. I read about Cassie on one of the pages from the homepage. I am hoping to order the book offline as soon as i can! Thanks so much for your help! it feels good to hear other people say such positive things!

Kelsey

Kelsey.... :lb9:

So brave of you to post but I am so glad you did. I can't imagine how sad you must have been when you didn't qualify for this free placement. Well it sound like you've done your research and now are on track to a new you. Great job. I love you honesty. I have long since been your age (I'm 46) but do remember how painful it was to be overweight at your age. I always was aware of it even though I wasn't too overweight in those years it still hurt me plenty of times. What a great choice to get this done now! What awesome parents you have to be supporting you to do this. Anyway the Oprah shoe when Cassie is on is August 11th!! If you are not home by then from your surgery try and record it.

Keep us posted on the days ahead and my advice is to start your pre-op diet a little sooner so you won't stress about losing the weight. Also look in the questions section and type in pre-op and there's good info to be found if you havn't already. I also love the testimonials section.

Take care!!

Thanks for all the support to all of you! about the before surgery, it wasnt even that i did not qualify. I did qualify. their explanation was that there were no more spots available, even though i was told that there were more spots available at the time of the meeting, which made things even worse. but, the past is the past, and i have learned from experience, that time spent worrying and dwelling on the past, is time lost in the present. So, here are a few of my questions:

What kinds of foods will i not be able to have after the surgery?

how much do you feel the fills? is it worth it to get the area numbed first?

I am still in school, and my lunches mainly consist of sandwiches, will bread be a problem?

what are they looking for in the pre-op exam?

I am sure that i have more questions in my head, but it is summer break, and my brains is on default! ha ha

Thanks again for all of the support! it is amazing knowing that there is always going to be people out there that i can turn to for this particular subject!

Kelsey

My name is Kelsey, and i am 16 years old. i have been very heavy nearly all of my life, or at least, all of my life that i can remember. About a year ago, one of my doctors told me and my mom about an availability for teenagers to get the Lap-Band as an experimental trial. If insurance could not pay, then it would be payed for by the company performing the trial. There were only 25 spots available, and it was only open to teenagers, and teenagers in my area. naturally, at first, i was an emotional wreck. i didnt know if this was right for me, i was scared, depressed, and all over the place. 'Normal for a teenager' i kept telling myself. It took a lot for me to push past the point of shock and fear. In order to have the surgery, i was required to go to an informational meeting. Here, we were told that there were around 10 spots left. Near the end of the meeting, i gave them my forms with all the information needed. after the meeting, the people in charge told my mom and i that they would get back to us within two weeks. two weeks later, nothing had happened. no call, no email, nothing. weeks continued to pass by, when my mom started calling them. they continued to say that someone was going to call any day now. each time that she persisted to call, they told us this. One night, the phone rang, and my heart sunk before anyone even picked up the phone. after my mom took the call, all she had to do was look at me for me to know, and i couldnt think of anything to do but run to my room and cry. I had gone through a huge emotional toll just to build myself up to this point. Now, almost a year later, i have an appointment of August 8th for my surgery with Doctor Ortiz. I am so excited that i have this amazing chance. I am looking for other teenagers like me that have gone through this or are going to go through this. I admit, i am scared. But i want the advice and help from anyone i can get it from. I want to know about the pain involved (i am a wussy), and i also want to know about what i should be eating now, before the surgery. what would help me lose more? If there are teens out there that can help me out, PLEASE DO!! and for those that are not teens, i want your help as well!! i am sure that i will post more questions later, but this is about as much as i can put at a time. more and i am afraid that i will scare people off. Thank you all! i have been reading, and i am amazed at how much you all help each other out!

Thanks again, ~Kelsey