debbiek1

LadyQT---Arnica Montana???? is that Hannah Montana's sister???

KTBUGG--first of all--congratulations!!! and relax!!!! i was banded in june at mt carmel and have BC/BS federal plan. it went just like any other surger. they dont submit the bill to the insurance till after the surgery. about a week later, i got a letter from the hospital asking for a deposit of 200 dollars. i didnt get a final bill for 6 months. the first time they sent it in, BC/BS sent it back saying "we need more info" which was scary. because they approved it, what more did they need. but that is just a game they play to hold onto their money longer--i guess. eventually, they paid 90 percent of the 22,000 dollar hospital bill. so my part was 1200. the final bill didnt actually come for 6 months. the surgeons bill comes separate. it was something like 3000. i cant remember howmuch i had to pay--maybe 300. then there were bill from the anesthesiologist and other miscellaneous bills. altogether i probably had to come up with 2000. but it was spaced out over 6 months. hope this helps. and you are going to LOVE being skinny!!!!

Aubrie--with me it is just the opposite. meat gets stuck but the protein bars go right down. i just cant seem to eat enough meat to get the amount of protein i need.

it comes in liquid form in a bottle. i thought it would be totally gross but the lemon flavored is quite good. no fishy taste at all. i took it to lower my bad cholesterol. i took it every day for three months and ate oatmeal every day for breakfast. but when my cholesterol was checked it didnt make a darn bit of difference. so i had no alternative but let my dr put me on cholerosterol lowering drugs. i hate that. the whole idea of the band was to get off meds. but she insisted. personally, i dont think my bad cholesterol was all that bad. she said it was 30 points above normal. my good was normal and my overall was fine.

i ate polenta when i was still in the mushy phase. i tolerated it well. i would buy it in the tubes and saute it. delish. but i found out it is much cheaper to make it myself and it is just as good.

has anyone tried to make their own protein bars? I need to eat at least one a day to keep my protein intake up. my hair is falling out. but protein bars are pretty expensive. I have found some recipes on bodybuilding websites. but i was wondering if anyone here has a fail-proof and tasty recipe.

ladyQT--wow, i had no idea you were going thru all that especially after the untimely death of your brother in law. but that must make you realize how lucky your mom is to be recovering. she is blessed. hopefully, everything will calm down and things will go back to normal.

Niki---WHOOOHOOO! congratulations. you have a lot of stuff to look forward too. vacation and then banding! in 6 months you will be swimming in that size 22 bathing suit!

I wore size 18 pants to work today and didnt feel like a stuffed sausage all day!! and they didnt even have an elastic waist!!! some 18s fit better than others though. i have already bought a couple of size 16s from the thrift store for the day i can fit in them. i havent worn a 16 since i was 16!!!

we should all get together the day of the fashion show.

thanks for that list. everyone needs to go to the fashion show. i went last year and it brought me to tears!!! it is so wonderful. i hope it is as good at polaris. they showed before pictures up on the screen and told a little story. it was so inspiring to see the people transformed and so happy.

I have BC/BS FEP, too. I had my surgery last june. i did not have to do a 6 month diet which was great. and once the insurance got all my paperwork, it took less than 10 days to get an approval letter. after the surgery they did give me a few fits, though. they sent every bill back saying they needed more information. Which was frustrating because they already had all the info. but eventually, 6 months later they finally paid the hospital bill which was over 22,000. i only had to pay 1000, which was fine with me. i usally post over on the columbus board or the NE 1 Banded at Mt Carmel board. come on over.

Lady QT must be out there some where living and loving her new lease on life. Sue--you are in my thoughts all the time. I am keeping my fingers crossed for you. keep up the good fight. i had a few problems yesterday. i was so sick of eating oatmeal for Breakfast that i decided to have a sausage patty. i thought since it was ground, it would go down. but after eating 2/3 of the patty it got stuck. pain. for the first time i slimed. i tried several times to throw up but all that would come up was slime. this is the first time i have had such an intense episode. i think the problem was the sausage was too lean. if it had more fat in it, it would have gone down easier. or if i had mixed it with something like grits. my stomach was sensitive all day and later in the day i got severe cramps when i tried to eat again. but i feel fine today. and the good news is that since i could hardly eat yesterday--i lost another pound.

it is a good suggestion for those not banded to check out riverside. mt carmel is not that well organized. i wish they were but... unfortunately, some people may not have much of a choice. mt carmel was the preferred hospital with my insurance. i could have gone somewhere else but they would not have paid 90%. that was the deciding factor for me.

Everyone is staying on course and getting all their stuff done. I wonder how Sue is doing. We havent heard much from her since her last denial. When i was going thru the process, I never even consulted my PCP. It was all between me, dr chobans office and my insurance. I am lucky in that my insurance didnt require a 6 month diet and any diet history. but i just told my PCP what i was doing and that was that. She was okay with it, though. thank goodness because i would hate to change doctors.

good choice. i will be there. hopefully, i will have lost a couple more pounds by then.

does anyone remember the seinfeld episode where george costanza gains entry into the beautiful womens club? well, today, as i was entering krogers, i passed a beautiful, blonde woman. she was looking at me and smiling and acting like she wanted to address me. I started to look over my shoulder, wondering if she was really smiling at someone else. but then it dawned on me--"She thinks I am one of THEM. she thinks i am a fellow member of the beautiful women's club!!! she doesnt know that 6 months ago i was a member of the fat womens club"!!!! Call me crazy, but i think george costanza was on to something!!!

our meeting at polaris went very well. HeatherA and I gave SpecialK some interesting feedback on our post surgery experiences. i havent had any problems. to me it has been like childbirth--yeah, it hurts but you forget about it when you see the results. and i never feel deprived because i feel like i can eat anything. i just get filled up faster. HeatherA is still in mushy stage and that is tougher. and the surgery is fresher in her mind. i hope we can get together again once SpecialK has been banded and get her experiences. and get some of the other gals to come. maybe we could move the meeting further south--like easton or gahanna. maybe that would be closer for some.

Special K--good luck. i got my pink top from the thrift store. Is any one else going tomorrow? this OSU game is not looking good.

i dont remember much about the preop day. but it takes about 2 to 3 hours and it is very boring. mostly lab work, xrays and nurses, doctors and dietician talking to you. you can take him but he will be bored. but at least he can keep you company while you wait to get the various tests done. good luck

the weatherman is saying it may be over 60 degrees on tuesday, so i am going to try to make it up to polaris to the meeting. i cant use the excuse that it will be too cold! niki--your saying you have made the same resolution since you were 12 to lose weight hit home. ever since i can remember being me, i have felt fat. and now i look back at pictures wonder what i was thinking. i was so beautiful and thin. why have i felt fat all my life? seems like it became a "self fulfilling prophecy" because the more i thought about it the fatter i became. but that is all in the past now. now i am feeling thin for the first time in my life. so everyone keep on track and "git er done"

hi, ktbugg. i love your ticker, it is so cute.

hi, all. after my last band adjustment i have noticed much more restriction. this is good. before i was as loose as a goose. now i can only eat half a bowl of oatmeal. meat is a lot tougher to get down. if it is in some kind of sauce it goes down much better. but this is all good. i dont want to be able to eat "mass quantities". i am not a "conehead". anyone rembember the coneheads? i did lose a pound and a half. finally. seems like i have been stuck for ages. I am going crazy at the thrift stores!!! i was in the ohio thrift yesterday for three hours and spent 55 dollars. but if i hadnt kept putting stuff back it would have been 150 dollars and not to brag or anything BUT i found a cool, gold necklace that i am going to use as a BELT!!!! and i found another gold necklace that does not have a clasp, but if i put it over my head and put one arm thru it at a time, i can get it down to my waist to use it as a belt too!!! Golly, I am so impressed with myself!! my friend and i found a gorgeous size 12 coat and my she kept telling me to try it on. i kept telling her no way could i fit in a 12. and a bystander said that she thought i could fit in a 12!!! it helps to be tall. but i still aint fitting in a 12!!

jazzy--congratulations!! 2008 is going to be a lot of fun for you!! you are going to be feeling and looking so much better than you did in 2007.

Sue--BCBS is being Scrooge. BAH-HUMBUG dont let them dampen your christmas spirit. May you and your husband have a merry christmas and a very happy new year did they say why they rejected you? was it your BMI? If so look on the bright side--apparantly you arent as fat as you think you are!! But fight for it. it may take a while longer but remember the squeaky wheel gets the grease. i havent lost any weight in weeks and plan on eating up a storm for the next couple days. but i go get an adjustment on thursday.