AngieB

Deb - yeah it is a bummer, but let's face it, we all make mistakes. At least this guy was brand spanking new. Now in the medical profession, it can be deadly, so really I can count my blessings it was not a life or death situation and "just" a fill! Guess there is always a bright side to every misfortune....right?! I hope you are well. Bet it is nice to be home and back to your kids! How's it going with the recovery? Did you have services for your mom after you returned? You know it! It is weird to not get the pouch full feeling when eating. I am sticking to the same portions.....but not feeling full. I am not hungry either, so that is awesome! I love the band! How are you recovering?

I wish my body worked like that. I had to build up slowly to restriction as we have learned that my body will only take a little bit of saline at a time. I guess my tissue must be sensitive to being zip tied! Ha! It does suck as it took me 6 months to get to a restricted fill level..... I think that because I had a foe fill on Friday, then a complete defill, and refill my barium swallow was at a "safe level" at .8 cc's. I am all for safe fills, so I am going with the flow. What is most concerning to me is how many times my port is being accessed. Ugh! My husband is pushing me to have them make it right. I know I will speak to them, but since it is at a hospital, the radiology department wants it's cut. They really don't care that someone else made a mistake. Know what I mean. I will be asking that the office visit fee be waived, which I believe is fair. Over all I like the staff and have loved the convience of literally driving 1 mile to the hospital. Spending 2 hours and viala! Done. So I am not willing to rock the boat to much as I am not wanting to travel further for fills. For me it a pick and choose your battles type thing....know what I mean....

So, here is a little back story.... I am actually copy and pasting this from another thread. But it tells what happened with out me re-typing the senerio. Personally, I am a believer in floro, however I do know MANY SUCCESSFUL bandsters who have there fills done under floro. There are MANY things that factor in to a fill. Take for example, I was in on Friday and had a fill. The surgeon who did my fill, was brand spanking new. He did fairly well, well sorta. He was a dead eye dewy and hit my small, low profile port first try! YAY! Then he pulled some fluid out to make sure he was in, again, alright, but I prefer not to have them do that at all. It causes more movement, and swelling which to me is not nesseccary. Anyway, When he went to add fluid, the syringe leaked, so he had to shut the stop cock. After that, the gal who was training him ask him how many CC's he should add, he said, 1 CC. I have a small, 10 cm 4 cc band and already have some restriction, so that was a no go. She told him .1 or .2 cc's and he proceeded to push saline into my band. I then did a barium swallow and the fluid was not passing at all. He was unsure of how much he actually added. Bummer, so he went to back it out and the fluid went through the band. **At this point I should have asked for another barium swallow, but thought nothing of it.** I asked how much he added and he told me a .1cc or .2 he had no idea. Okay, I thought well so I don't know how much of a fill I got. Guess from here on out I will not know what is in my band. I was making peace with it and went about my marry way. (had to return to work.) So, I got back to work and was on liquids for 2 days......no restriction. I called Sunday night to leave a message for my nurse and asked her to call me. Of course, more times than not, they DO NOT LIKE TO ADMIT that the fill didn't go as thought. The notes in my file said, gave .2 cc's fill snug. Yeah, that would have been awesome, except he actually pulled more out of my band than what he gave me, leaving me with NO restriciton. So I am going back in today and have to pay for the radiology fee again. Okay, what ever. Lesson learned..... The point of me sharing my last fill story with you is to let you know that MANY things can factor in to a good fill....floro or not. For me, I chose to find after care locally. I go to the University of Nebraska Medical Center for my fills. Each fill takes me about 2 hours. I have an office visit and then go to radiology for my fill. That is where I spend most of my time.... I am a wife, mother, full time worker with a part time job on the side. So travel and the expense tied to it is a greater cost than staying local. I have not had a fill at the OCC, BUT can say they are experts. They have done tons of fills and are able to dial you in. They have had people who got to tight from a fill there as well. Fills are not a exact science. If you find someone or where that works for you, then stick with them. Sorry for the long share, but I wanted to give you a glimpse into what can be possible. Wish me well today, as I will be going back in to get my restriction back! Ugh! Angie Okay here is the UPDATE......... They had me come back in on Monday. The surgeon, took all the fluid out of my band to see where I was. Guess what! I only had 1.2 cc's in there! Yikes! No wonder I didn't have any restriction....BOO! When he had drawn back to remove "some" he ended up taking over 1/2 of the fluid in my band! Yikes! Okay so she put that saline back in, and gave me an additional .8 cc's. So that brought me back up to 2 cc's still less than what I walked in the door with. Double Boo! This is a costly mistake. I will have to have another fill, to get me back up to were I was previously. I do not have restriction....and I am being mindful of my portions again. One major step back for me and the band. Once that will cost 3 times as much in the end. Ugh! Hubby is pretty mad. He feels like I shouldn't have to pay, but I do. I really don't know what to say to him about it. It sucks. When I was leaving the surgeon being trained on fills was walking in to the room. I smiled at him and he gave a deer in the head lights look. He was noticable uncomfortable. I didn't say anything, but did smile at him. It sucks to make mistakes.....In this case it sucks for me more than him. Ha! So I am back to building up to a level of restriction again. I will be going back in for a fill next month, unless they make an acception and let me come in before that....who knows. Over all it is dissapointing, but a fluke. I have not heard of this happening to anyone else....I will say this may have ruined my attitude toward being a patient who has a person in "training" do the procedure. I am normally really happy go lucky, but ugh!

Great post, I was a cheater. I had a strong connection to food. Pre-op diet was hard for me too. At any rate, I switched to pureed foods the end of the last week, but had mini cheats during week two as well. Like *clears throat* poping a slice of hot dog in my mouth sucking the gourmet juices out of it, then chewing it to bits before I spit it out. (And by BTW it was the best slice of hot dog I had tasted in YEARS!!!! LOL) The last week my saving grace was Panera's broccoli cheese soup. Ahh it was good, and felt like a huge cheat, even after I took out the larger pieces of veggies. Do what you can. I would have loved to say I completed it successful, but that just isn't my story. I was a cheater! Shh don't tell! LOL

Slimming happens often when you have a bite of food "stuck" or in your esphogus that won't enter your stoma/pouch. (this could be from eating one bite to many or not chewing well enough.) It is a build up of saliva. However, slim is not to be confused with spit. Spit is spit, slime is a thicker mucus. When you see slim for the first time, it is interesting. I was shocked by the abilty of the body to lub its parts to get something to move. (this is only my personal take on slimming others may be different.) Productive Burping - this is also when you have something stuck or have not chewed well enough, even taken a bite to many. Sometimes it is as simple as a burp that brings food back up to your mouth. It is a weird sounding burp, at least the ones that I have had sound discusting. I have also had the "soft productive burp" where I go to a sink, or trash can and flex my esohogus and while bending over, and viala - a blob of food particles/slim come up and out. Then there is the "hard productive burp" which reminds me of a vomit thrust. Much more forceful, also resulting in the food returning. Normally in the event of a Hard PB I heave a few times. It makes my band feel uncomfortable and I go to liquids. (only had this happen a few times, it gets your attention though.) Hope I answered your questions about that. I would also recommend you do a search with key words there have been some GREAT liquids posted to have during your liquids phase. I don't believe the OCC provided me with a list. Begin to look around at the store when you shop for different low calorie ideas. I wish I had had a better selection. I was ill prepaired..... Boogysmom or something like that had a list she posted that was AWESOME....check it out.

I would eat a cup of food per meal. Each Dr. advises differently. Listen to your body, sounds like it is talking to you. You don't have restriction yet, or at least good restriction. A 1/2 cup of food, at a really good restriction maybe. That is my opinion.

I love drunkin posts! Glad your surgery went well Sabrina! Sounds like you had another great experience. Woo hoo for sleeping on your side!!!!

Personally, I am a believer in floro, however I do know MANY SUCCESSFUL bandsters who have there fills done under floro. There are MANY things that factor in to a fill. Take for example, I was in on Friday and had a fill. The surgeon who did my fill, was brand spanking new. He did fairly well, well sorta. He was a dead eye dewy and hit my small, low profile port first try! YAY! Then he pulled some fluid out to make sure he was in, again, alright, but I prefer not to have them do that at all. It causes more movement, and swelling which to me is not nesseccary. Anyway, When he went to add fluid, the syringe leaked, so he had to shut the stop cock. After that, the gal who was training him ask him how many CC's he should add, he said, 1 CC. I have a small, 10 cm 4 cc band and already have some restriction, so that was a no go. She told him .1 or .2 cc's and he proceeded to push saline into my band. I then did a barium swallow and the fluid was not passing at all. He was unsure of how much he actually added. Bummer, so he went to back it out and the fluid went through the band. **At this point I should have asked for another barium swallow, but thought nothing of it.** I asked how much he added and he told me a .1cc or .2 he had no idea. Okay, I thought well so I don't know how much of a fill I got. Guess from here on out I will not know what is in my band. I was making peace with it and went about my marry way. (had to return to work.) So, I got back to work and was on liquids for 2 days......no restriction. I called Sunday night to leave a message for my nurse and asked her to call me. Of course, more times than not, they DO NOT LIKE TO ADMIT that the fill didn't go as thought. The notes in my file said, gave .2 cc's fill snug. Yeah, that would have been awesome, except he actually pulled more out of my band than what he gave me, leaving me with NO restriciton. So I am going back in today and have to pay for the radiology fee again. Okay, what ever. Lesson learned..... The point of me sharing my last fill story with you is to let you know that MANY things can factor in to a good fill....floro or not. For me, I chose to find after care locally. I go to the University of Nebraska Medical Center for my fills. Each fill takes me about 2 hours. I have an office visit and then go to radiology for my fill. That is where I spend most of my time.... I am a wife, mother, full time worker with a part time job on the side. So travel and the expense tied to it is a greater cost than staying local. I have not had a fill at the OCC, BUT can say they are experts. They have done tons of fills and are able to dial you in. They have had people who got to tight from a fill there as well. Fills are not a exact science. If you find someone or where that works for you, then stick with them. Sorry for the long share, but I wanted to give you a glimpse into what can be possible. Wish me well today, as I will be going back in to get my restriction back! Ugh! Angie

Hey there, I want to fist say, be careful! The 21 days of liquids are hard. Matter of fact, I was a cheater too. That being said. Let me tell you how I cheated. I drank my first 2 meals of the day and had a 1/4 to a 1/2 cup of puree mushie food for dinner. I would put what ever it was in a bullet and blend it, or I would have a piece of string cheese. Something that would melt on the way down. The purpose of not eating solids or mushies to soon, is to give you band a chance to SCAR into place. By putting weight on it...weight meaning food, that is putting pressure on the band and moving it from it's position. This very well could set you up for a band slip months even years later. Please do not go gung hoe. Don't cheat excessively or at all if you can help it. Even though you can. Your swelling is likely gone, and your band is WIDE open. That means more likely than not your food will pass right through with very little incedent. This does not mean you can go full board and eat pre sugery portions. Get your mind in check, you are not thinking things all the way through. If you want to give me a call, I would be happy to talk band with you. PM me and I will give you my number if you are interested. ((HUGS)) This journey is a hard one for me, as I still have food issues. Hang in there! Angie

Glad to hear it was a breeze, or has been so far! Deb I am sure you mom is very proud of you. I bet you could not be happier that she got to see you transform right before her very eyes!!! Please keep us posted on how your are progressing! Woo hoo!

I do love my band, no doubt about it. Have I had great success???.....well, it depends on what you look at as far as success. I have changed alot in ways and in others, have become more aware of some of my food traits. I have plenty of cons to the band, but the pros are there too. Is it difficult to live with the band, no. Not really difficult at all. For me the first year was a learning year. Now it is living with the band. If I had it to do over knowing what I know now, I would put more thought into the sleeve. I opted for the band because I was skeptical to alter my stomach so much. After being a year out....to me I think I would have had better success with it. It's all in who you are and the work you are wanting to put in to it. The lapband is WORK! Lots of work. Not that the other WLS are not work, it is differnent. I'd be happy to visit with you more about my views on the band if you would like to speak on the phone. Let me know and I can PM you my phone number. Angie

OMgoodness Lisa your sense of humor about this is so funny! I am sending you well wishes on the panty sling fling! LOL In all seriousness, you have REALLY changed you life. I am sure if he thinks you are as great as well all do, all will be well. You'll pry chuckle after this is all said and done about the "telling" part. Good fortune to you girl! Angie

Welcome to the forum! The liquids part was hard for me but I did the best I could do. You will too! I love my band and am so happy I got it. It really has shown me what inside work needs to be done. Get ready to work hard and feel good!

Deb - I am sending you good JuJu and postive energy! Looking forward to an update once you are in your right mind again....how ever druged up messages are good/funny too! We are here for you...well as here for you as we can be! LOL Angie

The large incision is where your port is located. It will be sore as it is stiched to you. Sounds like you are doing great!

Debbie - it has been so cool to watch you drop weight like crazy! Amazing truly outstanding. I am thrilled for you and am giving you a BIG ol' ((HUG))! I am so glad to know you and can not wait to hear about your plastics! Congrats! Woo hoo!!!

Shelby - love the new picture! YOU LOOK AWESOME!

I personally think you need to go back to soft/mushies or protein shakes for a day. Sounds to me like you are PB to much and odds are have swelling. Once the swelling goes down, try food again. If you are wondering if you are chewing your food enough, take a bite chew it up, and instead of swallowing, spit it out and take a look. Are you chewing enough?? Reduce your bite size by 1/3. Small bites, lots of chewing. Try liquids to let your pouch/stoma settle down. Also malox will help with the irritation.

Ya know, I understand how hard it is to go somewhere yummy and order something WAY different than what you would have originally chosen. I have found the sparkle of eating out has changed. My menu choices have changed. I have even felt internal conflict about not being able to eat the things I one would have. I am a food/sugar addict. Sucks to say that, but I have struggles when it comes to sugar products. My body begins to crave them and I cave and eat like crap. Even this far out, I can get in a cycle of this behavior and it is difficult. What is the worst part is sometimes I don't want to do a damn thing about it. Baby steps, it gets different, better, and sometimes worse. Get you head on straight and if this time is to difficult for you to go out for lunch. DON'T. IT WILL ONLY TORTURE YOU! Be kind to yourself, you are your own best friend. If you wouldn't ask your bestie to do it, don't put yourself through it. Your life is changing and if you choose not to talk to your co-workers then don't. Make sure you have support and a place to come/go to talk to that people can understand you. This place is great! I love it. I've learned that honesty is the atidote to my diseased thinking! Angie