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Cubankitten9

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Everything posted by Cubankitten9

  1. Dr. Martinez (Obesity Control Center) told me that sometimes the pouch does stretch when, like the other poster said, it has been filled past capacity... but if there is no band slippage, and you give it some rest, it generally goes back in place... but it is a function of resting the stomach and allowing it to go back to normal... of course, if you had band slippage you'd know... most likely you wouldn't be able to even keep water down. I was told to try and do just liquids, although some mushy foods were ok, for 10 days... not that I did 10 days, I only did 5, but when I went back they said my pouch was fine. Hope it helps! Kyle
  2. Hi Mary... thanks for responding... actually I did say I was banded in Sept 05... My last fill was in April2006, and it seems very odd that it would start up so long after the fill... I will call Dr. Ortiz's office anyway, as you suggested. Thanks again... Kyle
  3. I read the post about Dr. Ortiz padding his resume... although I had my surgery with him, and am quite fond of him, I wanted to check this out... following (below) is a cut and paste of what he put on his resume on his website... nowhere does it say he did a fellowship, nowhere does it say he performed surgery on anyone... all it says is that he attended a course study at Yale, which is what the doctor from Yale confirmed... now if someone says they did A, and someone else confirms they did A, then how is that padding a resume? LOL... that's being 100% truthful... no padding AT ALL... now, if someone is unaware of how to read a resume, and doesn't know how to distinguish between course study and fellowship (there is a huge difference and yet nowhere does Dr. Ortiz mislead anyone), then please let's not decree that someone is "padding" a resume... although many people do it, doctors should NEVER do it, because it speaks to their credibility, or lack thereof... and for us to even suggest that he padded his resume, without benefit of seeing what he actually put on it, is potentially damaging,and my guess is, not how any of us would like to be treated... if somehow in searching Dr. Ortiz's website I missed something that would lead one to believe he claimed one thing, but did another, I would love for anyone to please point that out to me... in my mind, he is a great doctor and yet I still want to be sure that his ethics are above reproach... I would expect no less of any physician. 2000 Endo-Laparoscopic Course Study Yale University School of Medicine Yale Endo-Lararoscopic Center New Haven, Connecticut USA Kyle
  4. Hi all... for about the last two weeks I've been having heartburn... never had it before surgery (banded since Sept 2005), and not until the last two weeks... I'm nervous about taking antacids because I dont know if it will negatively affect my band... but even when I have not eaten, I still have the sour stomach sometimes, which says to me this is less about what I'm eating and more about my body simply producing excess acid... so if my body IS simply producing excess acid, why? and what can I safely do about it so as not to compromise my band? Any info is appreciated... Kyle
  5. I hardly had any pain at all... mostly discomfort from the gas, but no real pain... I've heard the same things about pain meds in Mexico, but I tell you, whatever they gave me kept me happy and in good spirits... and I didnt take any pain meds after they released me from the hospital. Kyle
  6. Gas x didnt work for me, but I still only had gas discomfort the first day or so. As far as where to stay when you come for a fill, you could actually fly in to San Diego early in the morning, cross the border and get your fill, then take the evening flight home, so you might not have to stay anywhere if cost is an issue... if you do stay, The Lucerna is great, its the same place Dr. Ortiz puts you up at when you get your surgery... I think I read that you said you were having surgery on the 16th... MY!!! thats only 3 days from today!! Congratulations... remember to post about your experience when you get back. Kyle
  7. Jaconner...I heard that BS/BC won't even cover a gastric band, only gastric bypass... not sure if that is still true... a friend of mine had her insurance cover her gastric bypass, but I'll tell you she applied and was rejected over 4 times and she was 293 lbs 5'3", diabetes and her father went blind and died from diabetes! Now if SHE wasn't a candidate, I dont know who would be! Anyway, she finally got approved for her GB but it took her almost 2 years, and even then, she still had to pay a deductible and a percentage of the surgery. If you decide to do it, and can find the means, I think you'll think it was the best thing you ever did for yourself! KurlyQ... congratulations on being banded yesterday! Just remember that even if you go to work Monday, take it easy... surgery is surgery... and you should allow yourself to move at a slower pace if you need to. My best to you both... Kyle
  8. Lucky... you are more than welcome... you will find that since weight does come off a little slower with the band than with GB, you don't have the same haggard look... which is great... and in the end, if you still get the same ultimate weight loss, its all good... Kyle
  9. Lynn..glad to hear you are up and about... you will feel a bit sore for a while, remember your body has to adjust to the band... give it time and take it very easy for a while... relax and allow yourself all the time off you can afford... look forward to more posts! Kyle
  10. Kel, Kim, Julia and Alessandra...Congratulations to all of you!!! How exciting to be able to connect before your surgeries... please post as soon as you are all able and let us know how it all went... Wishing you all an uneventful recovery... Kyle
  11. Hi Lucky... my experience is that I do get enough nutrition and I do have enough energy... exercise and rest are important also.... if you lose a lot of weight very quickly you will have the loose skin issue... for me, my weight loss has been a little slower and steadier so my skin issues probably wont be so drastic... if you take liquid vitamins or liquid protein, you will have no problem... I also think that if you follow the doctors' guidelines re: what and how to eat you wont have trouble either... there is always a time of adjustment and learning in terms of what being banded will require from you, but if you do the work, you will get the result... one of my best friends had gastric bypass and she had the gaunt look for a while, which is why I decided on the band... its reversible and the weight loss is less drastic than with bypass, plus the malabsorption problems are fewer... As fat as vitality, you have to remember, if you are overweight, you have LOADS of stored energy, so when your body needs it, it will draw it from there... you really have to determine for yourself how much energy you have now... I know for me, I've had no significant loss in energy, and I feel great! Hope my pre-coffee ramblings help! Kyle
  12. JAS... Im pretty sure we all went to Tijuana, Mexico and Dr. Ariel Ortiz did our lapband surgeries... He is a great, great doctor and you will be treated very very well by him and his staff.
  13. Hi Tina... a few things... as far as Dr. Ortiz's qualifications, he is a member of the American College of Surgeons (not sure if he has his American medical license or not), but basically this means he has been accredited by the standards other American surgeons are (denoted by the letters F.A.C.S after his name)... also, any surgeon in the US who can band you will never have as much experience as Dr. Ortiz, because the procedure has only been performed here since 2001, when it was approved by the FDA... Doctors in Italy, Australia, Spain, Mexico and Sweden (and others Im sure) have been doing this procedure much, much longer than any doc in America. Also, the way INAMED (the maker of the only band approved for use in the US) works is that any doctor who wants to place an INAMED band, must be trained and certified by INAMED first, THEN, an already certified doctor proctors (trains) them in surgery... Dr. Ortiz has proctored many doctors in the States... He certainly has to be one of the top 5 doctors in Mexico for this surgery, and he is well respected in this field... If you want more "data" on him, try looking up his professional affiliations off his website, and look into them... see if you can get US references from his office... if your family and friends are concerned, its only a combination of caring for you and not having enough information... so your own journey to do this might be easier if you give them information that will reassure them. Congratulations on being banded! Kyle
  14. Its interesting to me, Bigger, that you are blaming someone else because you didn't get the results you wanted. I'm sorry that you haven't had the sucess you hoped for. As far as your endocrine system, that's pretty much something anyone in the world should look at BEFORE they even look into surgery. Not to question if your issue is glandular first is just plain immature... everyone (doctors AND lay people) in the industrialized world knows you ask that question first. I think if you had done your due diligence before you elected surgery, you would have sought out a medical opinion here in the States and discovere that your problem was resolvable through medical treatment... any GP that you consult will absolutely run tests to see if the issue is glandular FIRST, or send you to an Endocrinologist, to rule that option out... Either you didn't seek out a GP or an Endocrinologist here, or the doctor you did consult with wasn't on the ball. It's not a Bariatric surgeon's place nor responsibility to see why you are not losing weight... Surgery should always be the last resort unless you have a progressive disease. It's the responsibility of the GP/Endocrinologist to see why you aren't losing weight. If your issue is glandular, then no band or surgery will help you. Also, that you can't live a life because of a band sounds overly dramatic to me... stress hits everyone, but how you handle it is your own responsibility... you can't blame a band because you get stressed and can't handle your own responses... its obvious the band doesn't work for you, but my guess is that's more about you than the band... I've never heard of not being able to fly in a plane because of a band! I can fly, go to dinner with friends, eat generally what I want, am still losing weight, and NEVER puke up... because I take care of myself and dont stuff myself... throwing up is from eating too much too fast and is COMPLETELY CONTROLLABLE... totally the responsibility of the eater... Can I gorge on a full plate of pasta, bread and salad? No... but isnt' freedom from overeating part of the goal as well as weight loss??? If you want to be slimmer, you have to let some of that stuff go... and no, the band doesn't work without our participation. You can eat, but in small portions. That your US physician thinks this is criminal is ridiculous, and that not only sounds neanderthal, but untrue as well... any doctor worth his salt will ask you if you consulted any doctors here first before deciding on surgery... my guess is, you didnt and that you saw the band as a way to fix you without you having to make any changes in yourself... when it didn't work, you looked to a doctor, or a band or a surgical procedure to blame... how about looking at your participation, or lack thereof, and seeing where you stack up??? Im not trying to be mean here, trust me, I know what it's like to struggle with weight and I know what it took for me to get banded... but I also knew it was not without cost... I worked out religiously with a trainer 3 times a week, had every endocrine test in the book run and worked my behind off to lose weight... the bottom line was, my eating was out of sync with my goals... simple as that... but I had to accept responsibility that I wasn't able to manage my eating to get the results I wanted, but I tried everything else in the world FIRST... I had to give up certain foods, temper my way of eating and make a lifestyle change... have there been challenging moments? yes... might there be moe ahead? yes... but the difference is, when something isn't working for me, I go right to the mirror and FIRST look at what Im doing... then I would consider if the band needs adjusting/filling... but either way, Im not placing the responsibility on anyone else's shoulders... if you blame others after the fact, its simply because you were looking for them to fix you long before you got banded... That, my friend, is a recipe for disaster. I hope your doctor has helped you find the meds you need to resolve the endocrine issue, and that you will start losing weight. In the meantime, if you cant get the band removed, get it unfilled... an unfilled band is practically like none at all... problem solved!
  15. Sorry Cheryl, no stats, but my band slipped in January after 4 months (due to intense vomiting from stomach flu), Dr. Ortiz was able to put it right back on. He did tell me before he knew for sure if he could put it right back on, that the wait is like 2 months, and that as long as the integrity of the stomach isn't compromised, the band works just as well... it all depends on the stomach and, of course, on how well we take care of the band. Best of luck to you and keep us posted on how you're doing! Kyle
  16. That is great news!! As long as you're losing and staying healthy that's all that counts! Kyle
  17. Hi Storm... On March 1st you said you were getting banded next week... let us knowas soon as you are back and able to post. Kyle
  18. Seanymoss...what an awesome and inspiring post!!!!!!!!! Thank you!
  19. Luznit... CONGRATULATIONS!!!! You will NEVER wake up in a seedy motel when it comes to Dr. Ortiz... he is one of the best in the world at this... any doc you will find practicing in the US, has only been placing the band 5 years or so, but Dr. Ortiz has been doing this for either 10 or 12 years (cant remember exactly). Plus, since I saw him last, Im pretty sure he carries his own liver and kidneys with him!! LOL The day I was banded, there was a man from Alabama getting his band too, so there are men out there, maybe they just don't yak it up on boards like the chicks do! I remember my excitement leading up to surgery, just enjoy it all, and expect that there might be a learning curve in terms of how to eat differently after surgery. The gassiness, bloating and hatred of chicken broth will subside (trust me)... but after that, you will have to learn what you can and cant eat with the band in order to be successful... it varies from person to person...but what I find most amazing is that my hunger and pull/desire to eat is really gone! I do get hungry, but my "emotional need" to eat is gone, and so is the running conversation in my head about what to eat/not to eat... I eat whatever I want whenever I want... the key is, I dont want to eat a lot and cant, so it's effortless. Ive lost 40 lbs in 5 months, which seems slow to me given other weight loss surgeries, but everyone around me insists that's fast... and when I think that I will have lost 90 lbs in 10 months or so,WOW!!!, I know how fast that is. So keep us posted on your journey, and know that you are not alone! Take care... Kyle (yeah, Im a chick!)
  20. Hi Kay... You said: I was losing but felt discouraged as dinner was my big meal and then I would get into yogurt within one hour after dinner. If you are able to eat what you need and are still losing weight,why the discouragement? I have the same eating pattern, nothing in the AM, very very light lunch, then a pretty good sized dinner... and quite frankly that seems ideal to me! As long as you are losing and still able to get your nutrition, dont judge whether a meal is "too big" or not and rush off to get a fill so you will eat less... you already have health AND weight loss... anything else about a dinner being "too big" is a misperception on your part and being too quick to judge yourself harshly... DONT DO IT!!! Your benchmark should be weight loss coupled with getting the proper nutrition... once you have those things, let the rest happen... good luck to you... Kyle
  21. Chickenfarmer... definitely call Dr.Ortiz's office and see if they can give you a referral to a doctor in your area... if you look on this board, under the general discussions, there is a post called "Lower BMI" In there, one of the replies talks about someone who went for a fill by someone in the US that Dr. Ortiz trained... not sure where it is, but my guess is they got the name from his office... you may have to drive a few hours to get to the doc, but its better than a flight to TJ... also, it really just sounds like you need more fill... the moment I have enough fill, everything seems to work better... think of this as an experiment to find what works for you... it's hard when you spend the $$ and want the weight loss so badly, but you really have to look at this long term, not short term... you have to discover how you and the band work best together and once you find that, the weight will come off. Kyle
  22. Hi storm... congrats on being banded... I was banded by Dr. Ortiz in September, but didnt start losing weight til after my first fill... whatever you do, remember, give this process a few months to normalize, because a lot of things change in the first few months... your stomach has to get used to the band, swelling will go down, gassiness will subside and you will learn how to eat for your body, for your band... just think of this as an experiment... I remember before my first fill I called Dr. Martinez worried that everyone but me would lose weight, he reassured me that if it works, it works for everyone (unless all your meals are ice cream!)... by the time I got my fill 7 weeks after my banding, I started losing weight, being unable to eat a lot and feeling very free that I didn't obsess about food any more... 5 months after surgery and Im down 43 lbs (I had a pre-surgery BMI of 38)... I also am rarely hungry...I dont desire food in the same way, although I enjoy it...the band has really helped me relax where food is concerned... the mental conversation about what to eat/not to eat and what eating a particular food will do to my "diet" is totally gone... I eat what I want when I want... the trick is, I dont want all that much and I will not let myself get overfull, because it just feels crappy...so just breathe deeply, and rest assured that if you've gotten this far, you've done the right thing and the weight will drop off on it's own... all the best to you! Kyle
  23. Jenna thanks so much...I misunderstood the info I got from the other board about iron,so I know to stay away from that, and since colase involves a tube (LOL) Im staying away from that too! I will try the extra fiber to see if it makes a difference... thanks for the specifics on the fruits and veggies... Kyle
  24. Actually I was banded in September, the sluggishness has only been in the last 2 months or so...someone on another board told me to try colace and iron... I guess I will try a few different things and see what works. Kyle
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