Alexandra

Holy cow, Pete, seriously--that's a LOT of weight to lose so fast. You'd better hope that slows down! I'm sure you're in close touch with your doctors and I'll bet they're as amazed as we are. Congratulations!! (I hope no one else gets the idea that this is anything but an extraordinary rate of loss. It's NOT normal, and not something anyone should expect from banding surgery.)

Hip, this is a serious hurdle that you have to come to grips with. The question is, do you love pigging out more than you hate being fat? That's the decision that has to be made. You will still be able to love food--it's GORGING that you will not be able to handle. We all struggle with this. The blessing for me, though, is that it's not a decision YOU have to make every time using only your will power. This time, we have HELP putting the food down. Are you ready to lose weight? Can you imagine what your life and body might be like without 100 extra pounds? (I know I couldn't, before.) Clearly you've reached a point where being this size is no longer the way you want to live, or you wouldn't be here. Now you have to figure out how to hang on to that decision, remember that where you ARE is not acceptable.

Everyone's options with regard to financing are different. Some used credit cards, some used personal loans (which is what all "medical financing" really is), some refinanced their homes or took home equity loans. Your options obviously will depend on your personal situation. Good luck!

If your insurer covers the procedure, they absolutely should cover at least a few adjustments, or adjustments for a period of time. In paying for the surgery, they have agreed to cover the treatment for a medical condition. Without at least a few adjustments, the band is not a complete treatment and as such is not therapeutic for the condition. If you have an adjustment declined, APPEAL. The insurance industry is still adjusting (no pun intended) its policies as the band gains in popularity, and this is an area where we all can help. Have your doctor write a letter--which he probably has written before--stating that the adjustments are a critical part of the treatment. Bottom line: Adjustable gastric banding is not complete without adjustments, and they should absolutely be covered!

If your insurer covers the procedure, they absolutely should cover at least a few adjustments, or adjustments for a period of time. In paying for the surgery, they have agreed to cover the treatment for a medical condition. Without at least a few adjustments, the band is not a complete treatment and as such is not therapeutic for the condition. If you have an adjustment declined, APPEAL. The insurance industry is still adjusting (no pun intended) its policies as the band gains in popularity, and this is an area where we all can help. Have your doctor write a letter--which he probably has written before--stating that the adjustments are a critical part of the treatment. Bottom line: Adjustable gastric banding is not complete without adjustments, and they should absolutely be covered!

Everyone's options with regard to financing are different. Some used credit cards, some used personal loans (which is what all "medical financing" really is), some refinanced their homes or took home equity loans. Your options obviously will depend on your personal situation. Good luck!

Congratulations on your banding, Brad, and welcome to LBT! You asked on another thread about fills, and I was wondering how you could have come so far without having that explained to you. Or was it explained, and they just used different words? Anyway, welcome and I hope your recovery continues to go smoothly.

Brad, I just saw on another thread that you're already banded? Didn't your doctor explain the adjustment process to you before you made your decision?

The term "fill" is shorthand for the process of adding saline to the band to adjust it for one's personal anatomy. The (adjustable gastric) band that we all love is designed to work with a personal level of adjustment--the more saline that is added, the tighter the band. The usual protocol is that the first adjustment is done 6-8 weeks after surgery; this gives the band time to heal in place. Everyone's anatomy is different so there's no right "fill" level; it's a personalized process that everyone goes through. It can take several adjustments to find the right level, and though the process is simple and quick the first one is always a little nervewracking.

With a BMI of 36.6 your insurance carrier probably wouldn't deem the surgery to be medically necessary unless you also had co-morbidities. They don't have to be heart disease or diabetes, though; there are many other conditions that can be considered. Talk to your PCP and be brutally honest, give them lots of information they can use to make the case. But you should be aware that there are LOTS of people ahead of you, with BMIs of 40 and above. Every carrier must make decisions based on guidelines of medical necessity, so it wouldn't really be a shock if you were denied on those grounds.

You can "subscribe" to specific threads or set your options to subscribe you automatically. Then you can have LBT send you e-mails as those threads are updated. I've never done it, but others swear by it. Thanks for the kind words, and I hope you come more often!

Thanks, Faith. I am a known commodity, to some. Others who are newer only see what's on paper. But what's on paper is 15 years of doing THE EXACT JOB they now need filling! What I think is going on is a fear that they might be accused later of not having turned every stone, examined every possibility, before making a hiring decision. (Although that's what they did last year, and see how well THAT turned out!) Board-run organizations move very slowly and are slaves to committee-think. Also, I'm sure there is a school of thought that different, new, novel is by definition better than old, reliable, rerun me. But this organization is not about fast-moving change; it's about delivering membership value and reliable services. Sheesh!! That's what I told myself when I went through this wringer last summer. I searched and searched for another position, had an interview, didn't get that job either, and had resigned myself to working where I am for the next umpty-ump years. I will survive if that happens again, but whatever the universe has in store for me had better be pretty danged special!!

I'm sure no one here remembers, but last year I was up for a job -- a job I used to have as executive director of a nonprofit, for 15 years, before resigning at the end of 1999 because of family needs. In 2006 the woman who replaced me was retiring, so I thought long and hard about picking up the reins again. Ultimately I decided to apply, because it was MY job, my identity, for so long and ever since I left there I've felt professionally adrift (in a new career as an insurance broker, who wouldn't?). I loved that job and with changes in my life it would be very possible to take it up again. But in 2006 they passed me over and hired someone else. I heard through the grapevine that it was between me and that one other candidate, so I was #2. Now, just a few days ago that person was FIRED for cause--she was utterly incompetent and has cost the organization time and money it can't afford to lose. (As the bookkeeper for the organization, I am still involved enough to have inside knowledge of the details.) So an entire wasted year later, the job is open again. A different president is at the helm, and I am still interested. I've sent him a formal letter and my resume. And I've let him know in no uncertain terms that my personal circumstances have changed since I resigned in 1999, and I would be in it for the long haul. Today I heard they are advertising for candidates. AAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!! Maybe I am not so interested in working for this group. (Although it still looks better than being an insurance broker.) And maybe they can't afford me, which is a distinct possibility. But I don't understand why they wouldn't want to start a conversation about hiring me right off, since I was their #2 choice last year!! :mmph:

Hi Lisa, Yes, I'm sorry to say that I have gained weight, and at quite a rapid clip, too. I'm up about 30 lbs. It's killing me.

Hi peeps, I'm not crazy, but I am going to be (re)banded in August. I find myself mired in last-meal syndrome, and I have just under four weeks to go! My doctor doesn't have a pre-op diet, so I'm totally on my own and just desperately trying to not gain weight. I'm really miserable, constantly making deals with myself about not eating this so I can have that, and so on and so on. I know four weeks is not a long time, but if I am not really careful I could gain a LOT of weight. AARGH!!!

Trends, shmends. The only thing that makes a "trend" is media attention. I am sure there are no more December/May marriages than there ever were.

Hey, Pam, congratulations! And you are so right about people appealing even if they think there's no hope. There is nothing to lose and even if one person loses, the next one might win because of the fight. I was the first person to get Aetna to pay, so I know exactly how you feel. You go, girl!! :high5:

I married one, too (though he was non-custodial). Any single parent that has things under control is a miracle worker, not someone to avoid!!

The next time you see your doctor, ask him what he was talking about. Tell him your family seemed to have gotten some worrisome ideas from some things he said, and you want to get the straight story from him directly. Was he talking about you specifically due to some health condition? Or was he just giving them his standard postop follow-the-rules-or-else scare speech? It sounds extremely odd to me, so you should give your doctor the benefit of the doubt and ask him firsthand what he said and what he meant. Then make a judgment.

I'll bite. If there are more interracial marriages happening, it's a natural result of greater social integration and changing mindsets. Do I think there's a trend in the direction you imply? No. Do I think interracial marriage is "wonderful"? Sure, in the same way that any other happy marriage is wonderful.

Kitkat, none of us can predict whether you will have a slip due to your pushing the envelope like this. All I can say is that doctors give us postop eating regimens FOR A REASON. The stomach needs time to heal, and eating solid food makes it work and move around. If you are not completely healed then eating solid food is not recommended. Why take a chance? Follow your doctor's instructions to the letter and you'll be giving yourself the best chance for long-term success.

Benefiber makes a protein supplement. I think it's called BeneProtein?

Assuming you're looking only for August 07 bandsters, I'm Alexandra, scheduled for re-banding on 8/13/07.

I was horrible about remembering too, until I finally realized I had to take them AT WORK. The bottle of Vitamins is sitting on my desk (I am taking a regular Multivitamin now) and this means I will take it at least five days out of seven. My routine at home is so unpredictable I was never taking my vitamins! You can take chewables any time you want. It's just personal as to whether you feel you need them vs. regular pills.

OK, it's done. I'll move the sticky thread in there and leave it up to the guys to start new threads. Have fun!