KimberlyTrishelle

Hehehe. I don't really even remember where I heard of it, but somehow I did. I've been thinking about it for a few months so just went online and typed into Google, electronic cigarette. A BUNCH of different ones came up, so I did some research and went with the one that seemed to suit me best.

The one I have is black, approx the same size of a cigarette, and a bit heavier, it looks like a Clove cig if you've ever seen one of those. It is essentially (forgive me...this will be VERY simplistic..) a battery with a light at one end that glows red when you inhale, I'm guessing they wanted to make it as much like a cig as possible. The battery twists into a heating element. The heating element twists into a cartridge that is filled with some type of Fiber that is soaked in menthol flavored liquid nicotine. You charge the battery in the wall, or your pc via a USB cord. The battery charges the heating element, the heating element vaporizes the liquid, and you inhale menthol nicotine vapor.

Its pretty nifty. All the benefits of appeasing a smoking addiciton, without all the negatives. Plus, you can "vape" it anywhere. (Although, to be honest, I still get weird looks from people, and have since quit smoking it anywhere I felt like it..plus it fools my mind into thinking it is a "real" cigarette when I tell myself I can only smoke it outside, etc.)

Hi Rachel!

I just wanted to let you know that I feel EXACTLY the same as you do. I am ready to live a healthier lifestyle, I am ready to shed this weight that prevents me from starting a family, I am MORE than ready to be healthy for the first time in my life since I was 6, however for me..just like you, the hardest part is quitting smoking at the same time as giving up carbs, soda, coffee, and buffets :-) I kept asking myself "Is it REALLY necessary to quit right this second? " "Will I REALLY experience post-op problems if I don't?" It has been my experience that many things are made to seem worse than they actually are, so I just kept telling myself that it didn't REALLY matter if I quit or not before the surgery. I would just quit afterwards. Except I realized that after my surgery, when I'm sitting in bed recovering, then adjusting to my new diet, the urge for cigarettes would be MUCH worse than before. And this I DO know: You heal much faster minus cigarettes, than you do while smoking. I can't be out of work for too long, so for me, this was the argument I needed to kick my butt into gear. I need to heal as fast as possible. Plus, my husband will be taking care of me afterwards, and he will not let me smoke as he is vehemently opposed to it. In the end, I just think it will be easier to quit beforehand while I still have work and housekeeping (and yes...buffets) to take my mind off of it, than when I only have Oprah, Ellen, and Optifast.

As for a helfpul way to quit:

My surgeon did give me a script for Chantix, but I can't afford it and my insurance won't cover. So for Christmas I asked for an electronic cigarette. It contains nicotine, but none of the other harmful substances, also no smoke, odor, ashes, or spending $6 a pack. I just started using it a week ago as I told myself I would stop smoking exactly 4 weeks prior to my surgery. I haven't had a craving for a "real" cigarette since. This is MUCH better than doing a patch or gum because you still get to physically hold something that looks like a cig, and physically inhale and exhale, which as I'm sure you know are BIG parts of the addiciton.

I hope that you quit too, if need be look into the electric cig. It costs about $80 to start, but (with the one I bought) it comes with 25 cartridges. 1 cartridge=1 pack of cigs. After that it is $6 for 8 cartridges (8 packs of "real" cigs) so in the long run you save a LOT OF MONEY in addition to all of the other obvious benefits.

Good Luck, I have confidence that you will do what is best for you and your health, and if you ever need some moral support, don't hesitate to message me.

Great info in your post. I have a different insurance HMO United healthcare, do you know if all insurance companies require the six month report from PCP? Just wondering. I have an appt with my PCP next week to discuss my wanting the surgery. I am 38 and 280 and have been overweight my whole life

Hello! Not all insurance requires the 6 months report. Some require 3 months, some don't require it at all. I suggest contacting your insurance provider ASAP. That way you know EXACTLY what you need when you discuss it with your doctor, AND if you do have to do some type of supervised diet with your PCP, then your appt next week can you be your first month. Normally if you do have to do the supervised diet plan, than a couple of sentences regarding exercise and nutrition added to the end of your notes when he sees you is sufficient.

With my doctor it almost became a joke. I would go in for my appt, they would do all the normal things:weight, BP, temp. Then my doc would come in and say "What month is this?" "Number 3" I would reply. She would say as she wrote her notes "Ok, so you are here, you are overweight, you need to lose weight, you should eat fruits and veggies, lay off carbs, and hit the gym, anything else today? "Nope"-said me. Doc-"See you next month!"

Yea. Seems pretty pointless...but definitely worth it in the long run. Good luck with your insurance!

Having my surgery January 25th!! So excited! Good Luck to all of you!

Hi Rachel!

I just wanted to let you know that I feel EXACTLY the same as you do. I am ready to live a healthier lifestyle, I am ready to shed this weight that prevents me from starting a family, I am MORE than ready to be healthy for the first time in my life since I was 6, however for me..just like you, the hardest part is quitting smoking at the same time as giving up carbs, soda, coffee, and buffets :-) I kept asking myself "Is it REALLY necessary to quit right this second? " "Will I REALLY experience post-op problems if I don't?" It has been my experience that many things are made to seem worse than they actually are, so I just kept telling myself that it didn't REALLY matter if I quit or not before the surgery. I would just quit afterwards. Except I realized that after my surgery, when I'm sitting in bed recovering, then adjusting to my new diet, the urge for cigarettes would be MUCH worse than before. And this I DO know: You heal much faster minus cigarettes, than you do while smoking. I can't be out of work for too long, so for me, this was the argument I needed to kick my butt into gear. I need to heal as fast as possible. Plus, my husband will be taking care of me afterwards, and he will not let me smoke as he is vehemently opposed to it. In the end, I just think it will be easier to quit beforehand while I still have work and housekeeping (and yes...buffets) to take my mind off of it, than when I only have Oprah, Ellen, and Optifast.

As for a helfpul way to quit:

My surgeon did give me a script for Chantix, but I can't afford it and my insurance won't cover. So for Christmas I asked for an electronic cigarette. It contains nicotine, but none of the other harmful substances, also no smoke, odor, ashes, or spending $6 a pack. I just started using it a week ago as I told myself I would stop smoking exactly 4 weeks prior to my surgery. I haven't had a craving for a "real" cigarette since. This is MUCH better than doing a patch or gum because you still get to physically hold something that looks like a cig, and physically inhale and exhale, which as I'm sure you know are BIG parts of the addiciton.

I hope that you quit too, if need be look into the electric cig. It costs about $80 to start, but (with the one I bought) it comes with 25 cartridges. 1 cartridge=1 pack of cigs. After that it is $6 for 8 cartridges (8 packs of "real" cigs) so in the long run you save a LOT OF MONEY in addition to all of the other obvious benefits.

Good Luck, I have confidence that you will do what is best for you and your health, and if you ever need some moral support, don't hesitate to message me.

Hello All!

My name is Kimberly. I am 24 yrs young, married with no children, and currently a pre-Nursing student. I am 5'7, 354lbs with a BMI of 55.4. I started the lapband journey just over a year ago. I have Humana EPO, and they have been terrific. To qualify I had to have: Medical records with recorded weights for the past two years, (one a year was sufficient), Letter of Medical Necessity from my PCP, and 6 consecutive months of nutrition/exercise advise from my PCP (each month I went to the doc, she typed in something along the lines of "advised Kimberly she needed to lose weight, follow low-carb high Protein diet and exercsie 3x per week..yadda yadda yadda). I turned all of that into my insurance and received an approval less than a week later!

(This was after my father, who is the primary insurance holder, forgot to renew me on his insurance last January..thus having to wait another 6 months until his open enrollment, then another 3 months for my insurance to become effective again, so this prolonged everything by 9 months :-/)

But alls well that ends well, and now I am anxiously awaiting my surgery date. I am having it January 25th with Dr.Rehnke at the Palms of Pasadena Hospital in St.Pete, FL.

I start the Optifast on January 11th, and really am NOT looking forward to it. What helps me is the fact that my mother had the surgery with the same doctor a few years ago, so she has a bunch of tricks that she has passed on to me. One of which is to buy a BUNCH of different flavored extracts, like banana, Coconut, Almond etc. to add to the shakes. I'm hoping that will help with the variety.

I guess the main things I'm nervous about are:

1.) I have bad acid reflux when I don't eat. Will I have this while on Optifast?

2.) Anesthesia. I've never been under before, so I'm frightened of what my reaction will be.

3.) Just generally nervous about something unbeknownst happening to delay or prevent the surgery such as bad preop testing, complications in surgery, and various of other possible scenarios that have to come to mind. I want this so bad, I feel like I've been dreaming of it for a very long time, and now that my dream is being realized I'm afraid I will wake up!

I look forward to continuing to post as I experience this new journey in my life and I look forward to reading all of your stories as well!

Happy New Year!