I would like to thank everybody for taking the time to reply to my call for help. I guess that I was wrong about this surgery. I have to be honest with myself and my fellow my "banders", I thought that if I reduce my calorie in-ake that I would lost weight, automatic!! call me lazy~! My weight does not only effect my health, but my career! What are you talking about, you ask? In my line of work I have to maintain a certain weight. I though that if I got this band that I will lose the weight quickly without any hard work, but I know the things that you want in life comes with hard work! And none thing will be give to you..you have to work it!!! So, yes I have spent over $10K.... if you count the trips that I will made to TJ. Please don't get me wrong...I will continue to make that trips... because Dr Ortiz and his staff were and is amazing to me and my family. This weight lose has not effect me but my family. My husband has watch me through the pain, and financial difficult of my weight lose journey, and has not complain one time!!! So, I feel like I need to do my part not just go through the surgery, which was not that bad ! I know that I need another fill, but I need to exercise to achieve my goal! I have listen to so many stories about the "lap band", but the one thing that continues to come to mind is "exceptions". What are you excepting from the "band"? I have to be honest, I though if I got the band that I would not have to work out as much! But I was wrong! The body is amazing and there is only so much that the body can take. Bottomline, the "band" is a tool"not "a curse all" to my weight isssues! I understand that now!!! I will increase my work-out program, and I will go back to TJ, because there is no one that I trust more than Dr.Ortiz and his staff, I will spend the almost eight hundred dollars it takes (from paradise) to get a fill. I am planning my next fill sometime in Feb! Until then, I will run, and do weight training at least three times a week. Thank you so much for helping me!!! You know us "banders" must stuck together...