In much need of a fill

This is what a fill looks like under fluoroscopy. The fluoroscope projects the image of the port onto the screen and the MD knows just where to place the needle and how much fluid to inject. My MD doesn't do this kind of fill. He just feels around for the port and removes the fluid that's already in there to see how filled it is, and then injects the same amount plus more. It seems to work just fine.

I'm possibly switching band doctors. I really love my MD, but I never see him anyway. The wait to see him is 3 hours, so I always opt to see the NP, which is more like a 45 minute wait. She's nice, but I'm sure an MD in my area would be just as nice. Now that I'm not working in Boston anymore, it's just too much of a hassle to drive all the way down there and back for a silly little fill.

I haven't had a fill since either last August or September. I'm WELL overdue. I've made an appointment for a consult with the best band surgeon in NH, as far as I could tell from my research. She's about 2 miles from my house, and she doesn't usually take patients once they are post op, but since I've moved, and since she's already met me before when I was having gallbladder issues, she's considering it. I think it helps that I've had the band for so long, and I'm not a newbie that needs a lot of hand holding, or one that is prone to complications.

I have all of my records from my MD in MA, and I'll be meeting with the surgeon on 4/8. It won't be for a fill, so who knows when that will be, and that's only *if* she agrees to take me on. I just read my charts, and the last time I was weighed by my MD was in October, before my gallbladder surgery. I weigh about the same now as I did then, but I'd like to be down about 10-12 lbs from then when I meet with the new surgeon. I think that will help my chances of her taking me on.

So far, I've been a model patient for my former MD, and my records look great. All the comments are very positive, and the notes mention the positive life and nutrition changes I've made since my lap band surgery. I think this will all work in my favor.

I'm going to try to be very good about exercise. That's what will make the difference for me at this point. In general, I'm eating what I should, within the calories that I should. I need to step it up with working out, and I'm hoping that helps. It certainly won't hurt. My back has been feeling better and better, so I think I'm very close to being able to start lifting weights again, carefully.

I'm headed to CA at the end of this month, and I'm going to try to schedule a training session with Lou Ferrigno. Let's hope he's available! :)