FurEllie

I would have. I was at wit's end. I had tried EVERYTHING. This is the ONLY thing that's worked. Ever. I read the boards and books enough to realize that there was a "sweet spot" and not only might it take a few tries to reach, but once it was reached, it could change with my decreasing waistline. That's cool with me When I look back I know for a FACT I would not have lost the 30 pounds I've lost in March w/o the band. Period. More than likely I would have gained a few pounds. If dieting, exercise, pills, whatever had worked in the past, I wouldn't have spent 2 weeks total travel time and over $10K in medical and travel expenses. And yes, I would recommend this to ANYONE who was/is in my situation

Yep - that's it. Honestly, I have ZERO idea why it has anything to do with it which is why I'm trading this body in for a perfect one, lol. I noticed it and thought I was going crazy until I went to a larger band forum and saw TONS of posts about it. It happens like clockwork. Thankfully (sorta) I've been having some female issues and my last TOM was 3 weeks long - it was SO nice to feel that restriction! But the minute it stopped, bingo - I have so far not been full AT ALL. Things that made me PB go down like a dream and I can eat a lot of it. Not good. I think I'm going to go ahead and schedule a .2cc fill (which will make my total 1cc) so I won't be overfilled and see how that goes through the next TOM. Plus I have an appointment with my OB/GYN to hopefully solve that silly monthly problem once and for all Ah, the *cough* miracle of the human body

TBH, from what I've heard/read, the experience in TJ is far better than the Fill Centers. I've already read one complaint and one compliment on the center here near me. I'll give it a try though. Good luck with yours

I swear, what drives me crazy is that I'm COMPLETELY restricted during my TOM - I even PB'd ice cream - but once that's over, there's little restriction at all. I need to trade this confusing body in for a fine tuned machine

What a great thread. Thank you - I know you helped a lot of people (including me) know what to look for, what to expect and most importantly, pointing out again that this is tool not the complete solution Congrats and continued to success with your bandless weight loss!!

I took my medications with me and as gross as it sounds, chewed them up. I've bought a pill crusher since but I swear so many little bits get stuck in parts of it that I think the chewing worked better I also tried crushing them on the desk at the hotel with a drinking glass so I'm sure the staff figures I was doing cocaine in there CALL THE DOCTOR WHO PRESCRIBED THE MEDICATION TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN CRUSH/CUT IT! Also ask that doctor what the ramifications would be if you didn't take it for X number of days because it's something you shouldn't crush/cut. The prescribing doctor is really who you should talk to IMO.

:lol: I had a BMI of 39 and had the surgery 3/07. No psychiatric examinations. I'm going to try but I have a MASSIVELY huge deductible since I'm self insured. But even getting a little something back would be nice

I am the world's biggest baby and I've had 2 fills and an unfill from Dr. Romero - no pain AT ALL other than if someone came up and pinched you. I can't even look down at the needle or I'd pass out, but he hits that spot like a pro I'm making an appointment with Fill Centers because of the time/costs restraints, but I swear if they aren't as good, I'm headed back to TJ

As well as the one Pam mentioned, the one in the hotel is good and there's also one that's across the circle from the hotel - walk out of the hotel and if the hotel is 6 O'clock, it's about 1 O'clock on the circle - Casa de Mole or something I believe

I was banded 3/5 and current have .8cc fill. I've lost 31 total, 25 since surgery. Not a HUGE lost (especially when a friend's lost 72 pounds since April with GBP, lol) but 1. I know it's more than I would have lost w/o the band, in fact, I'd probably still be gaining and 2. When I stress, I "cheat" the band so I haven't been faithful. I try to eat high protein foods but I don't cook so it's not easy. I would love to have lost everything by now, hehe, but I'm quite happy with the way things are going. I'm not depriving myself but I'm still managing to lose a little every month. That's how I want to live my life, not "diet" the next 6 months or so.

They have FINALLY opened one about an hour and a half from my - YAY! The other nearest one was 7+ hours each way. I'm at .8cc and I'm going to make an appointment for an additional .2cc. I fluctuate between PBing some foods to being well restricted to being able to eat whatever I want but the latter seems to be the rule. At least this way if it IS too much, I can just zip down there and get an unfill. I just hope she's even 1/2 as good as Dr. Romero!!

I was overfilled my first time - 1.5cc and w/in two days I couldn't keep water down. Oddly, the first day, I actually ate a lunch. I went back a week later and now have .8cc I've had that for 2 months now? What I can tell you is that some days, it's a perfect restriction, other days I can eat like a pig, and other days I PB. One day I can eat 5 shrimp, 2 days later even one will come back up. I think the body is much too complex to be able for a "one size fits all" situation. They are opening a Fill Center place near to me HOPEFULLY in the next 2 weeks. I'm going to give them a chance and get an additional .2cc put in knowing it won't take 2 days and a $1K+ to get it removed if it's too much

I've been through...let me think - something crazy like 14 security points since my band, with 4 overseas. Nothing.

Kristy, did you have any problems related to your weight? I also have BCBS but went to Dr. Ortiz because I thought he was the best, but if I can get BCBS to pay even PART of it that would be great I have no problems related to my weight though

Great info, I'll try it with the white strips first - if that works I'll take the Zoom plunge. Now if we could only get Dr. Ortiz to do Lumineers - I'd be all over that Thanks!!!

Woohoo, I'll be a cheap(er) date

In all fairness, is there a reason why you picked the LB and didn't spend that money on trainers and such? I know why *I* did: Because I had already spent that kind of money trying all the other crap and nothing worked! I lost NOTHING. I've only lost 28 pounds since my pre-op diet and 22 pounds since surgery in March, but that's a LOT more than I've lost in a LONG time Plus I see it as a long term solution - there's no way I could go to a trainer every week for the rest of my life. I CAN cut down on portion size with my band's help for the rest of my life. Sorry it doesn't seem like what you were looking for - you might want to write out what you're eating, how much, when and your exercise and see if someone can see if there's a problem. Best of luck!

Personally I would give it another week or 2 and then if you're still not losing weight or feeling restricted, get another fill. Unfortunately everyone is so different, none of us know what the sweet spot is until we find it on our own

I like unjury.com I also like the "shots" from protica.com

Ditto. I KNOW I'm going to need the boob lift (been needing that for years.......). Not sure yet about the tummy tuck and won't be until I lose a lot more weight. I would be great if it would just snap back into place, lol. Yeah, right, I'm 45..... I plan on getting a face lift in my 50's. I look at my mother in her 70's and goodness knows she needs one and no, I am NOT going to be the one to tell her. Actually, she's always been so diet conscious that she has the opposite problem than me - if she GAINED 10 pounds it would fill out a lot of her wrinkles. But my jowls are starting to sag and I swear I pass the mirror now and swear my mother's in the house. I want to wait as long as I can so I don't have to do it more than once and end up like The Joker Thailand is another place I've been reading about with excellent rates on PS with 5star accommodations.

One thing to be careful about with The Magic Bullet - I had both of the blades go bad when the small plastic ring fell partially out and got caught in the blades Just make sure before you start it up that it's VERY SECURE inside the ring.

Thanks for the report, Greg I've thought about doing Zoom but friends here in the states have had bad sensitivity problems. I can only use Whitestrips for a few days and then my teeth hurt for several more Have you tried other whiteners and if so, what was your experience? Right now my fill at .8cc is doing fine so hopefully the new Dr. will get lots of practice before I need another one. But I'll still track down Dr. Romero just to look at his cute face

My band was in March and I STILL mourn food, lol! We are addicts. Just like the alcoholic will always want a drink, we will always want to order the appetizer, salad, main course (or 2....) and dessert. And take bites from our dining companions plates too Your band is your tool to help you still WANT it, but NOT EAT IT - that's a good thing You should be clear liquids for right now. Call your Dr., explain the situation and I'm sure you'll get the needed help You're doing fine and aren't experiencing anything many of us have at one point or another :)

Congratulations Lori!! You're a true inspiration to all of us here. I wish I had taken measurements before the surgery - really didn't want to know, lol. But I'll be happy with equal clothes sizes and weight loss!! Congrats again!! :) :)

In addition to the GasX strips, pack some Imodium