Chelley

If you are concerned, check with the nutritionist. My diet was modified from the standard by Dr. Miranda to accomodate my needs as a diabetic.

Hi, I think that we are suppossed to only eat 1/3 of what we ate prior to surgery, not a 1/3 less. Can anybody clarify this for me. Per Dr. Ortiz's book, LAP-BAND FOR LIFE, "a properly adjusted band will permit you to eat only a third of the volume of food you were used to eating". (Chapter 9, Discussion on Rule 2).

During the first week I ate clear liquids which consisted of broth, jello, water, juice mixed with water, frozen fruit pops. I followed the diet recommended by Dr. Miranda at the Obesity Control Center. The patient teaching guide she gives upon consultation at the clinic is very informative and simple to follow. She is also available via e-mail or telephone if you have any questions post-op.

Eve - To be sure, I'd consult with your doctor or his staff. I was told not to attempt anything larger than an Advil tablet. Of course, this all depends upon the kind of restriction you have. Chelley

Hope - Have you contacted Carolyn, the patient coordinator for Dr. Ortiz? She can give you some information on companies that do finance the surgery. I checked into these, but found the interest rate was higher than a special offer I arranged through Mastercard. If you have good credit, finding financing shouldn't be an issue. Good luck!

Woohoo! New low of 204 lbs today... feeling good. It's so nice to be able to fit into a size I haven't worn since I was a teenager!!! I have not experienced any PB'ing yet .. and hope I don't. I chew, chew, chew. Trying not to drink while eating is a new learning experience, but doeable. Lori - Tummy rumbles are normal... I think it's your belly's way of trying to adjust. If you feel hungry, then try some liquids. I just had to experiment! I didn't feel hungry in those first weeks, but I did have the growling noises ... I would just sip some liquids and it would usually go away.

Lanie - I was the biggest skeptic when it came to having surgery in Mexico since I am a hospital nurse here in the USA. I researched and researched and laughing say I know everything about Dr. Ortiz except his preference for boxers or briefs! As prepared as I was, the 3 hour plane ride, landing in a strange city and having to rely on others to pick me up and drive me across the border to a clinic in TJ of all places shot my nerves! As I sat in the lobby of the clinic I was like "what in the heck are you doing" and I began to have serious doubts about my decision for the first time since making up my mind to schedule with Dr. Ortiz. Then as I began to meet the staff, Dr. Miranda & Dr. Jimenez I recognized medical professionals who were in the same league as the doctors I work with on a daily basis. The clinic was very clean, far exceeding the standards of American hospitals! It's normal to be nervous. If you have any questions, I know Dr. Ortiz is very willing to talk to prospective patients on the phone and his patient coordinator, Carolyn, is just awesome and was a patient herself! The worse part about the Mexico experience is getting back into the USA. Strict border control makes the crossing back into the US long and tiresome, but Dr. Ortiz's staff is use to dealing with this delay and will allow enough time to get you back to the airport in plenty of time for your return flight home.

Hi! Thank you for your comments. Congratulations on your decision to have lap-band surgery. I'm glad to hear you too have had a positive experience in booking your surgery. The next few weeks will pass by quickly. If you have not already received it, you will soon get a patient information packet that help explain everything you need to do to prepare for surgery. I used a calendar to keep track of everything I needed to get done! Keep us posted and best wishes!

I'm down to 208lbs this morning! Back on solid foods too... and WOW! Yesterday morning I made me smoothie for breakfast and drank 12 oz.. all went throught he band which was okay b/c it was low cal and I'd put a scoop of protein powder in the drink and a little fruit. For lunch, I baked a sweet potato in the microwave, cut it into quarters and ate most of a quarter with some squash I'd breaded in cornmeal and lightly fried with Pam cooking spray. I wanted to eat more.. it tasted so good, but I just couldn't. You know how you have that really full feeling at a big dinner, like Thanksgiving, and you know you just can't possibly eat one more bite without being miserable... I had that feeling. I was full and it the feeling lasted for a long time. For supper I had a few bites of baked BBQ chicken and I chewed, chewed and no problem.. then I had a few bites of the sweet potato and the squash... FULL. I'm tickled to death that I'm not hungry and I can get full with just a portion of what I could eat before. I'm really trying to follow the advice of seeing how little I can eat with the band vs. how much I can eat with the band. I'm very pleased today and back on track to my immediate goal of breaking that 200lb barrier ... that will be a day to dance and celebrate and shout from the rooftops because no matter what fad diet I'd tried right down to starvation ... I could never get under 200lbs. I'll keep you all posted! Best wishes on your journey! Chelley

Kel - I can't spell to save my life... ! It's L-Carnitine and it comes in 500mg doses and rather expensive at $11 for 30 pills. This is a supplement that can be found in the vitamin/herb section of the pharmacy. However, it is NOT FOR EVERYONE. You should check with the nutritionist or your doctor to make sure this might be a good choice for you. L-Carnitine can interfere with other medications you might be taking, may cause problems with your heart beat... ect. They are horse pills and can't be swallowed whole, but there is no restriction for crushing them. For anyone else reading this post... there is no magic bullet... supplements can be dangerous and are not worth risking your health!!!! Best wishes on your journey! Chelley

The first fill went great... 2.8cc in the band by Dr. Romero who is working with Dr. Ortiz and Dr. Martinez. I'm starting regular food today and I DO have restriction! I've posted details under Newly Banded April 2006.

Lori - Doing fine here... start regular food tomorrow... so I'll let you know how the restriction goes. So far, I am trying to follow the advice of a fellow lap-bander who said something to the effect of don't see how much you can eat with the band, but how little you can eat to feel full.... on full liquids today I had a protein shake for breakfast (Slim Fast Optima High Protein) - took about 20 min to sip it. For lunch, 1 cup of pureed potato soup, and for supper 1/2 cup chili - no chunks - and a sugar free jello pudding cup. In between meals I've been sipping water. I really like those sugar-free FulFill brand fitness drink mix packets that you can add to bottled water and I've been using those for flavor changes (got them at Wal-Mart). Best wishes on your surgery! Keep us posted!!!

Hi! Check out the "Newly Banded" topic and you'll find several posts under that heading from those of us who have had the lapband placed. Best wishes!

Dr. Romero did my fill yesterday (June 12, 2006). He was also the doctor on duty the night of my surgery. I posted details of my fill experience under Newly Banded April 2006.

Goodmorning! Okay, I'm a ninny ... the fill experience was so easy that I can't believe I was ever even worried about it! The whole thing only took about 15 minutes and not nearly as uncomfortable as I had imagined. In fact, a shot in the rump hurts worse than the accessing of the port. I was very pleased with my fill experience. I received 2.8cc which is a huge fill. The doctor performing the fill (Dr. Romero at the Obesity Control Center) was very informative, telling me what he was doing each step of the way and even put me at ease with his bedside manner. The procedure was sterile - he swabbed by abdomen with betadine and I observed him opening sterile needle, syringe, and glove packages. The port is accessed while you are lying flat on the exam table under flurososcopy. One stick was all it took to access the port and it stung a little, but was not painful. After the port was accessed, he sat me up telling me not to worry about the syringe in my belly that it wasn't going anywhere and it did not move and it did not hurt but was a little odd seeing a syringe sticking out like that! The doctor was meticulous in making sure to visualize the barium flowing through the banded area of my stomach to make sure I got the best fill possible. I was able to watch the whole thing with him and was facinated. I was asked to drink some sips of bottled water in addition to the barium to make sure liquids were flowing through the banded area. I honestly did not even feel the needle being removed from the port. There wasn't even need for a bandaid. After the procedure, I was instructed to continue to sip the bottle of water while waiting in the lobby to make sure I could drink water without any trouble. Mom and sister had their fills too and all of us agreed there wasn't anything to it! We got to meet several patients who were there for their surgeries and that was really cool getting to talk to the future lap-banders! As far as the weight fluctuation I've been having, I'm back down to 210lbs this morning, after having started my menstrual cycle ... in Mexico .... arggg. So the lesson to be learned for sure is not to weigh when PMS'ing! I had myself all twisted into a pretzel for nothing!!! I'll keep you guys posted on the restriction. It's hard to tell on full liquids what kind of restriction I'll have... but a fellow lap-bander posted a word of advice on this forum that I found could be the key which was something to the effect of don't see how much you can eat with the band, but instead see how little you can eat to feel full. It most definately is a mind set change. Last night I had 1/2 cup of soup and realized I was full and stopped. This morning I had 1/2 cup of malt-o-meal and stopped. Of course, I could have ate more, but I'm really trying to listen to my body and stop when I no longer feel hungry. By no means am I trying to gloss this over .... conquering head hunger will be my biggest challenge. I keep telling myself... the band is a tool... the band is a tool... the band is a tool... not a cure all... and it's up to me to use the band wisely.

Nita - I think you'll read lots of posts from banded patients that express the ups and downs of life as a lap-bander because it's a time of adjustment for us as all and as we adjust we need support of others who have gone through this procedure. I was filled with excitement on the day of surgery and then I was filled with hope as the inches and the pounds began to disappear. Most recently, I've been a little worried about weight gain as I approach my first fill and have sought the advice of others on this forum and it's been great. My fellow lap-banders have lifted me up and helped me along with gentle encouragement. I can say that in my 8 weeks post-op I have NEVER ... EVER ... ONCE ... regretted getting this band. I could shout praise from the mountain tops just because I've been insulin free these 8 weeks (was getting 4 insulin injections a day) and I'm down to the size of clothes I wore as a senior in highschool. Yahooooo! But even I need a little encouragement sometimes ... and so does everyone else on the forum. That's why it's such a great website. We are all in this together.

Mary - Thank you so much for your response. I'm still very happy with my choice to have this band. As I've said, I haven't worn a size 18/20 since I was in HS which was 20 years ago... so I'm very pleased with the inches lost. I'm just worried ... a little anxious ... and a little scared as I approach this first fill which I suppose is perfectly normal. Your encouragement came at just the right time. And I will TRY to stay off the blasted scales!

Marc - Let us know how your fill went. I'm leaving Sunday to get mine on Monday at Dr. Ortiz's office and I'm nervous also. I'm not worried about the procedure, I'm just worried about the restriction and hoping it works! Chelley

Sylvia - Dr. Ortiz doesn't put any fill in the band until you are 6-8 weeks post-op. I have a band but no fill and now that the intial swelling of the surgical procedure has gone away, I can eat just like I did pre-band. The more I worry about my weight gain, the more I want to eat to comfort myself. It's a vicious cycle... and if I could control my emotional eating, well then I wouldn't need the band! Anyway, I am trying to be optomistic and I'm hoping my first fill goes well and I can have some restriction. My sister is still loosing weight and I'm so very proud of her. She has a smaller band than I do and has some mild restriction just from the band itself without a fill. She's also been taking L Caratine (sp?)- a supplement that assists in fat burning which was recommended to her by the nutritionist at Dr. Ortiz's clinic.

Arrrrggg... just got off the scale this morning and I'm grumpy. I was 215 lbs the day of surgery, down to 205.5 lbs after the liquid phase post-op and my weight has been creeping back up steadily. This morning I am PMS'ing and in a week I've gone from 210 back to 215! I've gotta stop weighing every freaking day! My first fill is this Monday ... I'm hoping it does the trick and I can have some restriction and start seeing the scale go back down. One positive thing is I'm still fitting into all my new clothes... so the inches are still gone.. just the weight fluctuation. Grrrr.

Well, I'm not getting the response on this poll question that I had hoped. Maybe all of us are so new to the lapband many of us haven't had fills yet??? I am very frustrated with my weight right now. In the time since surgery, I'd lost 21.5lbs which put my weight at 205.5lbs. Since I've been on solid food, I've steadly gained weight to a current 215lbs which was be pre-op weight. I'm worried with this larger VG band, that I'm going to have to have lots of fills before I get restriction. I've only had one soft ball in the chest response which was when I was hot and thristy and gulped 1/2 bottle of water without thinking.......owwww! But as far as food goes ... I can eat like I did before ... hence the weight gain. I'm hoping I'll start seeing the scale go down again after the 1st fill.

Congratulations Chrissy! It feels great doesn't it??? Best wishes on your journey! Chelley

Lori - My port site is about 5 or 6" above my navel and about 3" to the left of that point. You can log on www.lapbandtalk.com to view pictures of lapband patient's surgical sites if you are curious as to where they are located and what they look like. I can feel the port if I push gently on my abdomen, but I can't see it. It took me a few weeks to be able to sleep on my left side, but I've read posts by others who said they were sleeping on their abdomen only days after surgery ... everyone is different. It's helpful to have a little pillow on your bed to help brace your belly as you position yourself for sleep. As far as a tummy tuck goes... that incision is made in your bikini line and should not be anywhere near the incisions you have for your lap band. From the research I've conducted, there is no restriction for plastic surgery once you've reached your goal weight. Lap-banders don't typically have the percentage saggy skin that other bariatric weight loss patients expereince. Hope this helps! Chelley

Dee - If any of us could have lost this weight by sheer will power alone, we wouldn't be here on the lap-band forum and over 50% of Americans would not be obese! The lap band is a tool to help you with your weight loss journey. If you have Dr. Ortiz's book, I'd encourage you to read Chapter 10 which is about "head hunger". Even Dr. Phil McGraw says that will power is a myth and thinking all you need is a little will power to loose weight is self-sabotage. I was worried about the diet soda thing too because I drank several a day. I had my last one in TJ the night before surgery and I can honestly say it wasn't until recently that I craved one and I just immediately put it out of my mind and got a glass of water instead. You also can't imagine the boost you get emotionally when you see the scale start to move down instead of up! For the first time in a long time, Dee, I have HOPE that I can actually win this life long battle of obesity. God Bless! Chelley

Best wishes to you who are having surgery soon! My mom, sister and I will be in TJ June 11, 12th for our first fill.