ValleyGirl

No, not icluded. The price recently went up from $695 to #1395 plus hotsl and transpotaion. I stayed at the clinc since I didn't want to pay for hotel two nights. Buying bus transoptation is very convenient for me so I Paid $130 usd for that. They gave me the new lower-profile port! NO golf ball bump under my boobs now! Sabrina:)

First I will say that I am very sensite to pain meds so my visoin is blurry and I feel like I'm drunk typing. There were EIGHT surgeries before me (6 bands and 2 sleevs which Dr O alos does now) and it made me nevrous being last but Dr. Martinez seemed alert and very happy to see me in person since I call his call phone quite often qith questions-especially with all my port pain lately. It was realy sticking out and felt like it was runnding my ribs so they moved it and so far, so good I slept on my left side for the first-time in 18 months. In the exam I was told the band is in the perfect place and is showing no sighs of stretching so I was relieved. It was just my port after all!!! Again, the staff here is awesome. I wouldn't let any friends looking for WLS go anywhere else. If only the'd open a Plasctic Surgery wing, I'd be on the next plane! I also got a fill under fluro so I'm back up 1.8 cc's and hopefully I can stay at that level for a long time. Good luck to all the newbies I met in th lobby. It made my day that a couple people thought I was waitig for someone and not a patient cause I was too skinny. haha. I still see myself so big. Sabrina:)

YES I went to OCC and I'm going back tomorrow to get my port relocated `cause it's rubbing on my ribs now that I've lost weight. IT is a wonderful place and they will take very good care of you. Sabrina:)

Basically the band is "forced behaviour modification". I used to joke that the only way I'd lose weight was if I had my mouth wired shut and having a band is pretty much the same thing- it does not allow you to eat- at least very much. The problem for me has been that I can lose weight when my band is tight but I can't keep my band tight without complications so I've been chasing that perfect fill for over a year, have had unfills and fluctuations along the way, and now I have to stay at a very low fill level, white-knuckling it and not losing any more weight. Luckily, I lost a lot in the beginning because I would be very discouraged if I started having these problems from day one- which some people do. If you can't tolerate much of a fill, you'll be back to counting on your willpower and we all know how well that works for those of us with weight problems. If you have no problems keeping a tight band- great, you'll lose weight and lots of it! That's what happens when you can only eat a half cup of food! I don't want to be negative because I don't regret it but I also want you to know that for some people (and you won't know who you are until you are banded and start getting fills) it doesn't work and they get beaten up bad on here and I feel bad for them. I've been on the message boards for five years and have seen it all...like losing 65 pounds in two months, or over 100 in less than a year with no fills...those cases are NOT THE NORM. It does happen for some people but you need to go in to this with realistic expectations. MOST people lose 60% of their excess weight with a band, some lose it all, and some very little. I knew this going in and would have been happy enough losing 60 of the 100 pounds I needed to lose and I did even better, now down 95 but no it's not easy and there's no guarantees. I say do it FOR SURE but do it with realistic expectations. Sabrina:)

When I was booked for surgery, I was told Lucerna was under renovations so they put me at The Marriot. I'm only staying there Sunday night and sleeping at OCC MOnday night. I leave Tuesday, catching an evening flight home. Just ask for me when you get there for your fill Tuesday so I can say hi! Sabrina:)

I wouldn't be surprised if my pouch is stretched too...I can eat tons and was doing well with willpower until this week. Kids are out of school and I have no routine and I'm beinmg a very bad girl. I go to Mexico MOnday for port revision and I'm sure they'll have a good look when they are in there! I hope I'm okay so I can start having fills again. Sabrina:)

Because I couldn't even swallow water without it coming up and slight unfills were not doing th trick...OCC said it was best when you are that swollen to just give it a rest and take it all out for a few weeks so the swelling will go down. Sabrina:)

Not to confuse you even more, but the problem I see either way (and the reason I feel fils at OCC are more hassle than they are worth) is that your restriction level the same day you have your fill is not reflective of what your restriction level will be a couple weeks later. You don't get filled and then stay at a consistent restriction level- it fluctuates. That is why I would work to find a fill center or surgery center in your area that will work with you. OCC has a list of fill docs across the country and can provide you with names. Unless you live close by, it could become very costly and inconvenient- especially if you ever need emergency unfills which I needed twice in my first year- the last one following a fill I had at OCC that seemed perfectly fine when I left there...and I had waited 24 hours just to make sure. Sabrina:)

When you PB, you swell up and need to do 24-hours of liquids after. I'm sure if you weren't already swollen form the previous pb, you probably wouldn't have problems wth some of those foods (deli beef, tuna) but typically beef and bread are out for bandsters! Sabrina:)

I have been very happy with Dr. Manchanda myself. The last time I needed an unfill, it was the fill I got from the OCC! Guess it's a gamble anywhere- the band seems to have a mind of it's own! Sabrina:)

All that mountain climbing has made your legs so muscular! I'm so happy for you. My only piece of advice is..........GET SOME SMALLER CLOTHES!!! You don't have to hide behind baggy shirts anymore, lol! Sabrina:)

Welcome back and keep us posted for sure. I'm in the same boat you ended up in a couple years ago...can't tolerate much of a fill so I have very little in there, can eat quite a bit (and sometimes I do) and I always worry about stretching my pouch by eating too much. I've been maintaining a 96 pound loss for about six months now but continually worry the weight's going to creep back up on me. I'm sorry to hear you had to go through some tough times. I'd like to lose another 20 myself so let's cheer each other on and get that 20 off!!! Sabrina:)

I will be at OCC Monday, July 12th for possible port relocation surgery. Hope to see some of you then! Sabrina:)

I wouldn't be in a rush to go to the OCC for this. Like Angie said, it is FICKLE. I have days where I am wide open and can eat and eat and eat then I suddenly get restriction again. I think it's impossible to get perfect restriction all the time- just listen to your body day to day, eat accordingly, and leave yourself some "wiggle room" with the band so that you are not having to get filled and unfilled constantly because you are too tight, getting things stuck, swelling up, etc. That's what leads to slipped bands. I think if you have the odd incident where you need to stand up when eating, that's fine (I sometimes have to hold my hands above my head for a few minutes to help it go down)but you shouldn't have to stand all the time when you are eating. The first year is a learning curve. You'll find the place that is right for you soon enough I'm sure. Take care. Sabrina:)

Way to go!!! It seem s like just yesterday you were down about 50 pounds...91, WOW!!!

I lost 21 pounds in 21 days on liquids, then started solids a couple days before Christmas. I gained 5 back over the holidays and before the first fill:( I've gained a few times since being banded but I lose it really quickly as soon as I pull up my boot straps! Sabrina:)

I've been living with very little fill since getting too tight and needing two unfills earlier in the year. I've been trying to make good choices but certainly eat more than I did when I had good restriction. Finally, after a couple months of using more will-power than band-power, I am down a couple pounds!!! This band really has changed my realtionship with food and although I can't totally depend on it anymore, it gave me a good head-start which has motivated me to keep going on this weight-loss/healthy lifestyle journey! Sabrina:)

If I go to Dr. Campos, he said he would move it but Dr. Nyte won't. I'm just worried that what if he opens me up and finds it's not a port causing problems after all, but something worse. 18 months of port pain. I'm at my breaking point. I went to emergency on the weekend for XRay and I get a barium swallow tomorrow...then and they are sending me reports to send to Dr. Ortiz but it takes two weeks for the m to mail me the disk..."hospital policy". Ugh!

I think the rule of thumb is you should feel "satisfied" and not hungry for about 4 hours between meals. The first fill should really help. Hang in there! Sabrina:)

Just wanted to say thanks for your honesty and I believe in you too! Sabrina:)

LOL at your comment on Dr. Campos' looks! I had a consultation with him in December...not my type but glad you enjoyed the eye candy...or should I say "hair candy" haha. Sabrina:)

Curious your reasons for staying in SD next time. I am considering Campos for my work too but don't want to stay in TJ the whole time. I don't speak a single word of Spanish (Canadian) and the violence there still scares me. When I went for a fill I stayed at a hotel near the borsder that had free shuttles to and from Mexican doctor's appointments. It was a bare-bones room but clean enough and certainly convenient. Sabrina:)

I am 99% sure I'm going to need this surgery too. My port has always moved around and has always felt like it was rubbing on my ribs, and I've never been able to sleep on my left side and now it is suddenly sticking out like an alien inside me and hurts ALL THE TIME. I called OCC and it's only a 15 minute procedure but it will cost me about $1000 for flights, surgery and transportation so I'm holding out thinking the port revision could be done for free when I get a tummy-tuck, something I ALMOST have enough money to do in the next few months. I am trying to hang in there but it's really bugging me so I may have to get it taken care of before tummy tuck which sucks `cause I'll have to use tummy-tuck savings and then I'll need to save that $1000 again and who knows how long that will take. Let me know what you decide. Sabrina:)