Ambrosia

Good Luck! I am sure everything will be just fine. I have two weeks before my surgery. I hope I stay as calm as you. I'm 48 years old and I have never, ever been in a hospital before in my life so I'm just a little scared. Keep us posted on your progress. Sharon

Tracy, It won't be long now. Your dillegence is paying off. Good for you for staying on top of everything. Keep us updated. Sharon

Exactly, MyKdsDad. Losing 32 pounds in any length of time is certainly better than gaining 32 pounds. I'm being banded next month and if I do half as well as Bandiva has, I'll be thrilled. Sharon

Bandiva was just banded last month so I would say 32 pounds is awesome! Her first fill is this month. Who are you to judge anyway? Sharon

I told my sister since she has to pick me up from the hospital and look after my dog during my overnight stay. I also told my Supervisors at work. Everyone has been supportive. My parents are out of town for a couple of months which works well for me since my mother would try to talk me out of it and/or she would tell everyone she knows. I'm being banded on 2/15 so I should be back to normal and maybe even a little thinner when they get back which will help. Sharon

Shirley, Congratulations on your 146 lb loss. That's wonderful. You must be very proud. Sharon

Joan, Tracy and I have never met but we both attended Dr. Malleys seminar on 1/6. Since her avitar is a picture of her I told her I would try to find her and introduce myself. Unfortunately, she was sitting way up front and I was in the very back of the room. I was surprised how many people attended. Anyway, Tracy left before I did so I didn't get to say Hi. Maybe we'll all meet one day. A little local banding. Sharon

Silry, Mine went really fast also. I attended the seminar January 6, had my consultation with the doctor on 1/23, got my lab work done the same day and was approved by the pre-op nurse the next day. My surgery is set for 2/15. I am self pay and was hoping things would progress quickly but I never expected it to be this quick. My supervisors are having a food orgy for me on 2/8 so I can taste all of my favorite foods one last time. It will be fun but I am going to say goodbye to these foods forever! Good luck, Sharon

Congratulations! I am being banded on 2/15 by Dr. Malley. Keep us posted with your updates. Sharon

I am an Executive Housekeeper in a casino hotel. Fun, fun, fun. Sharon

I'm in the Kansas City area and I'm a self-pay. The cost is $16,500 with free fills for a year. After that, fills are $100 each. Sharon

Hi, Shannon, I'm from Independence and I'm being banded February 15 by Dr. Malley. I'm glad you're feeling good. Keep us posted on your progress. Good luck, Sharon

Yea! I can join a group now! My surgery date is 2/15 and I can't think of a better Valentines Day gift to myself. Who knows, maybe next year I'll have a date for Valentines Day. I'm being banded by Dr. Malley in Kansas. My Supervisors are throwing a food orgy for me on 2/8 and bringing all my favorite foods that I will no longer be gorging on after my surgery. I can't wait. Good luck to everyone on their upcoming surgery. Sharon

This may be a worn out cliche but when one door closes another one opens. Maybe this will be a brand new start to the second half of your life. Are you able to apply for COBRA coverage? If so, you will still be covered for your fills. I wish you the best of luck and as everyone else said, keep the faith, because God does provide. Sometimes we just didn't know what we needed to be provided with. Sharon

Lab work is finished. I had a phone assessment with Carol, the pre-op person, at Doctors Hospital today. Due to my overall good health I won't have to meet with the anesthesiologist. Carol left me a voice mail message tonight saying everything is approved and I am ready to go! I applied for a loan today and I should have an answer tomorrow. So far, so good. I can't believe how fast things are moving. Sharon

Yes, I will be going to Doctors Hospital. I think I will drive out there just to check things out since I've never heard of this hospital. There was an earlier surgery date available but it was at Menorah and Amy said that wouldn't work for me but I can't remember the reason it wouldn't work for me. Oh well, 2/15 is better for me since I'm out of town next week on business so that gives me two weeks after I get back to get my things together. I'll keep you posted. Sharon

I haven't used Sheer Cover but I have used Bare Esscentials (sp?) and didn't care for it at all. Everyone raves about it but I looked like a clown. No matter how little I used and how well I buffed it on, it all settled in my wrinkles making them 10 times more noticable than they usually are. I always felt like a freak, thinking I was the only one who didn't care for the whole "mineral" experience. Sharon

I also buy the powder kind. It is from Nature's Best and the label reads, "Perfect Low Carb Isopure". It has 50 grams of 100% ion exchange whey Protein isolate. Don't know what that means, but it really is good mixed with skim milk. I've only tried the chocolate flavor. I buy mine from the internet and I can't remember the website. You can probably find it in any store that sells this type of product. Sharon

Welcome, Machele - I'm also from the Kansas City area and just had my consult with Dr. Malley today and I'm scheduled for surgery on 2/15. Read, read, read everything on these boards and you will learn everything you need to know. The information is priceless. Good luck. Sharon

Tracy, I saw Dr. Malley today. I also saw the KISS cut out in his office. Too funny! Anyway, I got my surgery date - February 15! I'm freaking out! I didn't have to do a pysch eval but I did get my labs done today. So, all that's left to do is to figure out how to pay for it! Although I have the cash, I'm still going to look into financing since with my luck, the car will shoot craps, the furnance will conk out or something will go wrong as Murphy's Law suggests. I have to have everyone paid by February 8th so I'll finalize things by the end of this week hopefully. Let us know when your date is scheduled. I'm anxious to compare notes with you when all is said and done. Good luck. Sharon

It's the name of my cat that crossed over the rainbow bridge four years ago!! :angel: Sharon

Anna, Welcome to LBT. I'm in the Kansas City area. If you're on the internet then you must be one of the lucky ones that has electricity. I'm sorry to hear about the horrible weather you've had. We had an ice storm a few years ago that sounds exactly what you're going through. My power was out for 4 days and part of my roof collapsed. I am not banded yet, my consultation is Tuesday. I just wanted to wish you good luck on your journey. Sharon

There was a thread about this topic a couple of weeks ago. I have one and I really like it because it does not hurt my knees or any other part of my body as long as you wear a sports bra! I can jog in place for about 20 minutes and feel like I get a good cardio workout. Sharon

Welcome, Annette. I'm not banded and have just started this journey myself but I want to wish you the best. The information on these boards is priceless so read everything you can. Sharon

Thanks everyone, this info helps. Isn't it funny that I'm more nervous about the pysch exam than I am the actual surgery?! I've never had either so I don't know why I'm nervous but I am. Marjon9, I couldn't agree more. That's exactly how I feel. I have thought long and hard how about the numerous situations I will be faced with and how I will handle them. My life revolves around food and I am actually looking forward to start having my life revolve around anything else but food. Thanks again. Sharon