calicoast

I have taken a pill that was large & cut it in half with a sharp knife to swallow and it worked great.

I did this because first I crushed it and it tasted awful!

I too am scared to swallow a big pill and it getting stuck, especially with my good restriction.

Drinking something warm first also helps.

We rescued a few feral kittens & pregnant cats when I was a girl. We kept one of the kittens,

and I swear to you, it was THEEE SMARTEST cat I have ever owned! Very affectionate too.

My first fill was on the 22nd and I felt no restriction at first... until 4 or 5 days later, then I made the mistake of eating too fast

and WOW..so much pain and I actually threw up, with very little warning! lol

Now I have really good restriction and eat my protein first! Anything bread-y gets stuck!

I cut my pills in half, but that was before my fill and better restriction. I'm kind of afraid to take a big pill now.

I'd go with what the last poster said, smaller pills and warm water bottles!

Hope you feel better...

When I was at OCC on Wed., 10/22, the crew was there filming the teen and Dr.Ortiz for The Doctors show

and they told me to watch for it in a couple of weeks.

It's probably a follow up / success story to the show that aired today? Interviewing them both on how it went? I don't

know, but that's what he told me!

I will be totally excited to watch!

Kristen

I sent my paperwork in for Hubby and I to the Olympia place yesterday, they should be calling me. I swear if they talk to me like that, I will tear them a new one. We are going to spend a lot of money there. I am very nervous about this first fill. After what Julie went through, I am scarred to get over filled even though they are not that far away, I dont want to have to go back. I just hope we get it right the first time. Since I only have a 4cc band, they can't put that much in the first time. My hubby has 10cc, I wonder what he will get. He says he can eat everything with no problem. I wonder if he is being honest. I had some problem with chicken, he said he did not.

I too thought of going back to TJ and basically we are paying around the same. Because of what the airfare and hotel would have been. But I just can't take that time off and if something happened, I dont have time to deal with phone calls not being returned or whatever issue they had. I really need someone close by. So all and all, I think for me and hubby, this is the way to go. I hear they are good. If they are rude to you tell them off!! your money is good anywhere and they better respect you cause you are paying right? I hate mean people. Anyway, I hope to see you on the 8th, I think I am getting my fill after that for sure cause I want to eat on that day.

Hi Stormy, I just got my first fill - 1.6 - yesterday at OCC and everything went fine. I have read posts about not using Fluro, that it's not that important. I would never have

allowed them to NOT use Fluro! I needed, for my own peace of mind, to see how the whole thing works, I wanted to see where my band was, if my stomach stretched

(a bit paranoid because I could eat anything, not that I over ate...) and most importantly, because of poor Julie, I didn't want an over-fill. When the Dr. had too much fill,

the fluro balled up and wouldn't pass, when he let some out, it passed slowly, but it passed. I got to see all of that! I will never have a fill without the fluro!

( am I spelling that right? lol) Anyway, just my 2 cents... I came away less afraid, and so will you.

He is going to be on Dr. Phil in 2 weeks? Cool. I will put it on season pass to make sure I catch it.

No, not Dr. Phil, but on the new show he produces, "The Doctors" with that super cute Dr. Stork, from The Bachelor!!

They will all eat their words and attitudes when they see Dr. O on yet another respectable TV show!

He will be on "The Doctors" in about 2 weeks, I was just at OCC getting my 1st fill and they were filming.

I too had no restriction and could eat anything! I was only too happy to get down there for this fill. They

put in 1.6 & I really hope it works for me! I was very tired of the plateau that I was stuck in for weeks.

It was becoming so discouraging...

Anyway, Good luck!

I just got back from OCC having my first fill done, & a film crew was there to interview Dr. Ortiz about the

Lap Band procedure he's done for a teenager. The crew told me to watch for the episode to air in about

2 weeks... Fun eh? The crew commented on how beautiful he thought the OCC was...

Dr. Phil's, "The Doctors"

Ok, I just got back from OCC, and while I was there, there was a film crew there to flim a story about a teen who

got the Lap Band from Dr. Ortiz which will air on the tv show, " The Doctors", the Dr. Phil new show!

He said it will air in appx 2 weeks & to look for it!

Anyway, I got 1.6 cc of fill; I hope it works! I'm eating black bean soup as I type and so far, no problems... lol

Julie: I did refer to you and your problems without naming names, ( I kept it vague...) and he told me they did have a MAJOR

internet & Telephone cable that went out and affected the entire city for a long time...

AND, I had left my favorite pillow at the Lucerna during my initial surgery 6 weeks ago, and OCC retrieved and held it for me

this whole time! So happy to have it back... haha

I am headed for TJ in a bout 40 minutes for my first fill and it can't come soon enough! I have zero restriction and have

been on a plateau for weeks! I am so glad about all the informative posts here , especially the one from Julie regarding her

last fill at OCC. I will know all the right questions to ask now, thank you!

I have Verizon cell phone service. Has anyone had any experience with it while in TJ?

Thanks,

Kimberly

Well, I have ATT and it did not work. I had to call my friend from the hotel and have her

quickly add Mexico to my plan so I could talk to my kids. I stupidly assumed because it's

a hop, skip and a jump from the border that it would still work... NOPE!

I would add international to your plan, temporarily.

There was a great tip from a lady here about Fitday.com that I went to. ( I believe she was recommending diet

menu's, which I didn't find, but I found other GREAT things about the site)

You can make up a profile for yourself that includes a daily food log. It is GREAT!!

You input what you are eating and it calculates the calories, fat, carbs, protein, etc...

It tells you, depending on what type of exercise you are getting, how many calories you need to

eat to lose however much weight needed for your ultimate goal!

You can even "customize" food, so I went and got all the nutrient info off of my protein powder

and 1% lactaid milk and input as "protein shake". It stores all the food you have put on your log

so If you're like me and tend to eat the same things because they are good and good for you,

then it's easy to find.

It's been a great way for me to track my calories, which I have never been able to do in the past,

and I tend to be a "wondering eater" snacking when bored, etc...Now I know if I am getting close

to my day's limit.

Check it out!

Sounds pretty normal for post-op to me. Your body is going through a "detox" or "withdrawal" period from all the carbs and sugar and everything else that is bad for you we all ate before surgery. You also are sure to be dehydrated if you havn't drank any water and it's after noon. You must keep the fluids going almost non-stop. You MUST drink protein water to get some protein in. You must rest as you need it so your body will heal. Many of us started our cycles after surgery, it's a weird thing that happens. Use a heating pad on your tummy and wherever else you hurt. No reason to feel guilty, you just had surgery for heaven's sake. Our bodies take time to heal and sometimes it hits you more after several days. Especially since you are only having liquids. The coffee is not the best especially when that's all you had. Caffeine dehydrates you. Set a goal and for every hour get a glass of something to drink and make sure you drink at least 8 oz every hour while awake. Yes that sound like alot and is but even if you get 4 ounces an hour you need liquids. Your body needs fluids to make you feel better. You are past day 4 so you should get some drinkable yogurt smoothies and those will also make you feel better. They were a lifesaver for me. Hubby too on all the above mentioned things!!

:lb4:

If I remember and am counting right TOMORROW you get full liquids. Go to Safeway and buy some of their homemade soup it is the BEST. I lived on the Tuscan tomato basil bisque. It has no chunks and is devine!! Splurge on this and also get some puddings, frozen fudgesicles by skinny cow are also great. This is the time to try and be creative, don't worry about calories or anything else. You are in the most important phase of post-op so be good to yourself.

Call me tonight I will be home and I would love to talk to you. I leave tomorrow for the OCC for my 2nd fill.

Hugs to ya sweetie!!

I love that Tuscan tomato basil bisque too, but it is very high in sodium! Like 720 gr per 1 cup!! I stopped eating those high sodium soups and look for

less salt ones. Trader Joe's has some great creamy soups that are easy on the salt...

I think I am messing up!

I made myself that Chicken Tortilla soup last night off the recipe section and had a substantial bowl of it. I am fairly positive it was too much as I felt stuffed and a bit quesy.

Dr. Miranda did not say "how much" soup we should have at a sitting, she did say do not eat more than 4 oz's of protein at a sitting. So what should I portion out?... a cup? 1/2 cup?

any recommendations or advice would be helpful.

C :lb12:

There is a recipe section? Where? Anyway, I start off my day with a great chocolate/banana protein shake with Lactaid 1% milk for breakfast and cream soup for lunch and dinner.

I always get full after about a cup. That said, I cannot wait until solids! Oct. 1st! That's when I'll have to watch it...

Yeah Love the show! Just got my band last week so Im going to do it with them, Weigh weekly. They can seriously lose some pounds wow! Im still on clear liquid and starving and not coming close to those #'s Maybe when I can exercise again??? Yeah I will never work out like that LOL I Need Bob!!!

I too have only lost 10lbs since 9-11-08! I don't get it! I have been walking stairs and hills, still on creamy soups and drinkable yogurts and have just stalled out.

The 2nd week curse on biggest loser gave me a little hope though. I guess I'll just stay off the scale for a week. Argh....