Were is all my Chattanoogians at?

daniml · 11-21-2008, 09:46 AM

Sorry to hear that you guys are having problems with Dr. Ponce's office. I have not had any problems with them at all. Tiffany usually calls me back within a day and now that they have added Jennifer it's even faster.

They also don't tell me how much they put in, but I don't really care. As long as it feels right I don't care how much is in the band. Brooke has done all my fills and she has done great every time.

I do attend support group meetings every month and think they are very important and helpful.

Quote:

The last 2 fills I have had have been too tight. I have had to go back and have some taken out twice. I have been very aggrevated with them. They do this stuff everyday, they should know how much fluid to put in.

They do this stuff every day, yes, but everyone is so different. 99% of the time it works as expected and in your case it just didn't. There is a lady that comes to support group meetings who has had problems eating since the very beginning, it's not because they did something wrong, but she's just different!

Good luck to both of you and congrats on your weight loss so far!!

Carrie_C · 11-21-2008, 11:18 AM

That doesn't surprise me that Johnna isn't calling you back. The nurses are good at returning calls, but she's not.

downsdc · 11-24-2008, 11:15 AM

Hi everyone,
The Memorial Diabetes Center has certified that my blood sugar is now well controlled (avg. about 120 right now) so it looks like my surgery will be around the second week of January (in Dalton GA). I don't know the exact date because they don't have the January surgery schedule for Dalton yet (I'll find out in mid-December). I guess I'll be stsrting my pre-surgery liver diet shortly after Christmas and Dr. Ponce (from the Gastric Band Institute) will be doing my surgery (self-pay). When do I choose my type of band, and which one did you choose (and are you happy with your decision)?

slim-n-tn · 11-24-2008, 11:52 AM

You choose your band type at the pre-op class that they have you come to. It is a 3 hour class that basically covers everything that the nutrition class covered. At that time, they give a form to choose your band. Tiffany went over the differences between the two bands. I chose the LAP-BAND^®. I am happy with my choice. There wasn't really a particular reason that I chose that one. As a matter of fact, I tossed a coin because I hadn't expected to have to choose. You will find that some people swear that there is a major difference, but really they work the same. You can do a search on here and find threads about both Realize and LAP-BAND^®. I think one of the major differences is the port. Realize band has a lower profile port than LAP-BAND^®. Also, I think Realize is stapled some how to your muscle where LAP-BAND^® is sutured in. I really think that is the only real differences as far as the bands themselves. Realize does offer online support tools.

I hope my limited information helped some. Congrats on getting your bloodsugars under control! I know that was major. I hope that you get a good surgery date!

Carrie_C · 11-24-2008, 12:25 PM

I chose the LAP-BAND^® just because it has been around longer. I think one of the main differences is with the Realize band, there is an online support group. You can pick a model and see what you will look like when you get to a certain weight. That would be neat, but I just decided to go with the LAP-BAND^® since there is more research on it.

Slim, my husband would love you avatar!

slim-n-tn · 11-24-2008, 12:33 PM

I picked the avatar because of my husband. He is a HUGE fan!

daniml · 11-24-2008, 12:47 PM

I picked the Realize band for no particular reason. Tiffany (the nurse) and Dr. Ponce both said there really is no difference except for the online support. LAP-BAND^® now has that as well, so really, there isn't a difference. I've talked to people with either and no one had complaints.

The LAP-BAND^® has been around longer in the U.S., but the Realize band has been around almost as long in Europe.

Good luck with your surgery! I had a great experience with the surgery center in Dalton. Everyone was very nice!

Carrie_C · 11-24-2008, 03:27 PM

I didn't know the LAP-BAND^® has online support now.

daniml · 11-24-2008, 05:13 PM

Apparently they just started it. They told us about it at the last support group.

Carrie_C · 11-24-2008, 08:38 PM

I'll have to check that out. I don't go to the support groups because I live in Cleveland and it is too far. I wish someone would start one up here.

downsdc · 11-25-2008, 11:23 PM

I wonder why my signature didn't show up in my last post?

slim-n-tn · 11-25-2008, 11:29 PM

Maybe you unchecked the box next to "show your signature" by accident?