Papillon Princess

TYPICALLY BMI of 35+ with documented comordities or 40+ without. Make sure your insurance doesn't have a clause excluding WLS (some of them do) If your PCP did this, it may not have been approved due to the way she wrote it up. YOu may want to consider finding out why you were denied and visiting a bariatric surgeon for the letter of medical necessity. It sounds like you have not gone through the 3 or 6 month pre op diet (which is required by many ins companies)

Not sure how Cigna works - but according to my surgeon, the records have to be consecutive. So hopefully you have 6 months consecutive in there, if not, start working towards it! They said if I miss one during my 6 that it would start all over.

Thanks, I got my staples out today. The incisions are healing up very well. The dr is keeping me off of work another week because I'm still having quite a bit of pain. Still not regretting it, but hoping the pain subsides soon

I have that bruise also! They were giving me shots of Lovenox (I think was what it was called...) in the tummy I believe for blood clots. One of them pinched to get it in the right spot and it bruised, so that may be what it is. At least that bruise doesn't hurt! I have a huge bruise on my forearm where the nurse attempted an IV (and missed...then dug around in my arm!).

Thank you for the clarification on that. I hope people are coming on here looking for the truth and I'd hope a bad experience wouldn't sway them one way or the other. I hope you're successful with any route that you take in the future.

I don't mean to be rude, but you've been pushing the no bands to a lot of people (whether you say you're anti-band or not). By coming out and telling us about the failure rate of 50% makes me question how good the surgeon is that you chose. My surgeon is from a center of excellence and puts people through lots of "hoops" (as many call it) to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. My dr has had an extremely low number of complications, no deaths and very, very few removals. So rather than blaming the band...You may want to tell people to look into a better surgeon. This really is about how good the dr is. Do they truly understand what they're doing? Do they have a passion for this? Are their staff truly there to help you? Do they get to know you? I can answer yes to all of those and many more questions. The tool is only as good as the operator (whether that be the surgeon that places it or the person that continues to use it in the future....you). So yes, there can be problems but consider where you're putting the blame before going on so many posts telling people not to get the band. (I'm not 100% pro band - follow my posts - I've told people straight forward they are not right for the band! Because if you want a quick fix, if you think the band is going to do it for you, if you think the pounds are just going to drop, if you don't want to exercise...you need to look for something else!) I don't mean any disrespect but I hope people are on here for the truth and to research for themselves.

I was told WW does not count for the 6 month diet. You CAN include it as an attempt without the documentation They will typically want a medical documentation of previous weights from one of your regular dr's. If you're talking about the actual 6 month diet - WW will not count. I was even told my regular Dr wasn't able to document these. My insurance wanted a bariatric specialist commenting on the diet, weight, etc. This is what I personally incurred though....

The BMI they are going off of is the STARTING BMI - so the first consultation that they start tracking your weight. If you lose after that and go under that BMI, you're showing that you are a good candidate as you can work to lose with this tool. I asked this question specifically to my Dr and some nurses and they were very encouraging to lose as much as possible before. This will help the surgery and you'll be better off later. Some people will tell you to eat whatever you want and enjoy yourself now, but I'm not even a week post op and I have no regrets of not eating whatever I wanted earlier. I didn't lose a significant amount of weight, but I lost what I could and didn't focus on the numbers. I focused on getting healthier, exercising and learning more about the band.

Hi Misti, I was banded on 5/24 also at 10am! I don't think I'm doing as well as most and still not sure whether to give that credit to the band or possibly the hernia repair they did while in there. I've had a lot of nausea today and yesterday. Day 1 was great (I owe a lot of it to the pain meds at the hospital, I was inpatient as all my dr's patients are) and day 2 was horrible! The ride home really made me feel lousy and sore. I don't really feel any hunger but that's probably due to the nausea. Day 1 & 2 I was able to eat Jello and drink plenty but never did even finish a whole bowl of jello (about 1/2 cup). I'm not feeling too itchy so far, but definetly sore! Hope you continue getting better and enjoy your band!

I don't think anyone is trying to stop her to stop her from losing weight. We're all saying she is not prepared or ready for this! I'm surprised she has a surgeon that has even discussed the surgery with her (unless she lied about exercising). I can't tell you how many times I was told this is a tool and is not an easy fix and you will have to exercise for results. The things she said that make me think she is not ready for this... " i want to quick fix" ".i can't do exercise i never done in my whole life and still don't want to do so if i go for this sergery than i still need to do exercise" "my personality is like that i cant take pain and if it happens to me that i want to remove the band and u know its gona be waste of money." To me, those are triggers that show she is NOT ready or responsible enough to use this tool properly. She wants a quick fix, a tool doesn't do the work on it's own! She says she never exercises and still won't, she's not ready to make the commitment to change her lifestyle. She's looking at it as though the pain is not worth the outcome. Well, if you really want a new life and want to become healthy, the pain is worth it. I'm not feeling great on day 4 but I don't regret this one bit! I don't feel like I wasted my money and I know I need to exercise! I can't wait to get back to the gym and start feeling better! I wasn't encouraging someone not to do the band because I do think it is a life saving tool but I don't feel she is ready for this. I'm not going to encourage someone that is most likely going to fail because they're not ready to take the responsibility of having the band work with them. However, if she researches this and truly understands it and does it for the right reasons and will do what she needs to do, then I would definitely encourage her.

Maria, It seems as though you're not ready for a tool to help with the weight loss. Not wanting to exercise is just not going to work. This is a tool that needs to be used properly and is no quick fix. It is going to involve some pain, restriction, tightening etc. I think you're assuming this is just going to stop the calories from going down and never having to exercise. I know this might seem rude, but I think you're better off looking into liposuction with that attitude. No exercise and quick results! If you're not ready to take responsibility for this, you really should not consider a lapband.

Hi Tracie, I was also banded on the 24th and am having trouble getting everything down. I had to call my Dr today because I'm unable to take in anything other than my sf popsicles and Water. (Crystal light, decaf tea, and Jello are not going down). They just said to focus on getting your 64oz of fluids and prescribed something for nausea. The bloating can be from the gas, and they just recommended walking around for that. Then again, I don't think I'm feeling as well as most banders were by this time and think I'm having it a little more rough than most. Just focus on your liquids right now if you can't get your shakes down.

Well a few comments on that - baby food does have some additives and may not be flavored the way you would personally like it. The nice thing about pureeing your own food is that you can cook it and flavor it how YOU want it. Home cooking usually tastes better than a jar Plus you can play with the consistency by adding a little water or broth. So personally, I'd prefer to do it myself over the baby food. I wouldn't say baby food is bad for you...but as far as taste, you may like your own cooking better.

There are different types of hernias, I found out I had one and it was repaired during surgery. When showing them where I was having the most pain, they said that was where the hernia was repaired. So for me, I do believe it has caused a litlte more pain but once again everyone is different as to how they respond to pain. Day 1 wasn't too terrible, day 2 was HORRIBLE, day 3 is going okay. So hoping to just continue feeling better each day.

Good luck! I had mine done yesterday and so far it's not too bad.

Thanks Cindy! I've been walking but having quite a bit of pain so it's just short little walks.He has motivated me to do this so I can be more active with him!

Yay! I'm typing this from my hospital room. I have a pretty sweet, private room with a great view. I just walked a little down the hall, still needing the morphine though. Overall I feel pretty good, but these gas pains are horrid in both shoulders and make it hard to breath. Everything went well, but I am missing my dog...taking a walk without him was weird. Anyways, I'm bored sitting here so figured I'd post. Do I have any regrets? NOPE!

Thanks...I cuddled lots with him last night, he seems to know somethings up because he's been extra clingy! He is staying with my dad (my parents are switching so someone will be at home with all of our pets). But I still worry! I got a little dog so I could take him everywhere...and even though he's a certified therapy dog, they won't let him stay. I was hoping to make people believe he was just a realistic stuffed animal I'm leaving in 45 minutes! I've been up since 3am because I just can't sleep. Is it 10am yet?? (My surgery time!) Anyways...since I'm up early, I'll go ahead and take him out and play for a little bit. Thanks for the support, it's nice some other people feel the same way about their pets!

So I'm very excited it's the 23rd...as tomorrow is my day to finally be banded! I have no worries what so ever about the surgery (i've been through plenty of surgeries and I trust my surgeon 110%). BUT I'm worried about leaving my little papillon - he's never spent a night alone and I have to stay in patient a few hours from home. How did you deal with leaving your babies behind???

Just realized you responded to that...Mine is also at 10 tomorrow! I'm leaving here at 6:30am (have to be there at 10:30 and I live outta town)

Hey, if you're looking for something different, Boca Burgers are high Protein, some are low fat and easy to take! Just heat up in a microwave for a few minutes. I don't really care for most meats so boca burgers are great!

Have you tried orthotics? These are inserts designed to put in the shoes that are fitted for your feet specifically. My mom had to get them after a foot injury and if she doesn't have her orthotics in, she has a lot of pain. Try seeing a Podiatrist and they may be able to help with that.

I was encouraged to lose as much weight as possible...they may weigh you the day of surgery (or ask for your weight) this is more for anesthesia (sp?) purposes. If you've lost 20-30lbs (give or take) that is a decent difference in the amount of meds needed to put you to sleep... The BMI is calculated based on your beginning weight. I was absolutely assured that they want to see you're focused and sincere on losing weight so they will want to see weight loss.

A few ideas...I'm on the same diet, kind of. I can have 2 Protein shakes, 4 oz of lean protein & 1/2 cup of veggies daily. No sugar in anything...and that includes natural sugars in fruit (which I miss A LOT!) I used to eat a banana and apple daily...and add blueberries & strawberries. Oh I miss those...but it'll be worth it! Anyways....the protein can also be eggs, so I've been scrambling eggs with veggies and making an omelette. I don't like red meats so I've been chicken one night, scrambled eggs the next night. I just got a message back from my nurse and she said I can also have a vegan boca burger. Those are so good! So maybe try venturing out and trying some of those options. Also...as far as the sugar, if the dr leaves it up to you, you may want to consider cutting out the sugary yogurt. I was told it causes cravings for more carbs and my cravings have calmed down quite a bit without the sugars.

Yep, echo, ekg, and stress test. This is required by some insurance companies and many surgeons. Just a safety precaution (regardless of history or age...i'm 23 w/no heart issues).