Jim1967

Cigna denied me the first time around because they were not satisfied with the documentation my Surgeon and Staff provided them. It was not until I provided exercise logs and food journals that they finally approved me. Don't give up and make sure your Surgeon and his Staff communicate directly with Cigna on your behalf. Good Luck!!

Kicking butt!! Congrats...

Thank you!! Missy you're so sweet :-)

Had a fantastic weekend but as usual my only wish was it didn't fly by so fast. I was in my friends wedding this weekend. Probably for the first time in many years I felt really good about myself. I felt I looked decent and I was confident. I am so thankful to my new best friend of 15 months (My band). It is truly amazing what proper fitting clothes can do for your psyche. Even standing outside decked out in a tux with it being 95 with a heat index of 105 I was quite content. 15 months ago I would not even have been able to stood long enough to be in this Wedding and finding an actual tux that would fit would've been a tremendous challenge. This first pic was taken with my IPhone which obviously has a dirty lens.

Congratulations and welcome to the band-side. For me I have always thought BMI charts are very unrealistic. For me is about being comfortable in my own skin. I am only 5'6 and to be within a normal BMI range I should weigh about 154lbs. I do not see that ever happening especially with all the loose skin I'll be dragging along as well. Unless I can convince insurance to cover skin work which I doubt. I am shooting for 220 with 200/199 putting me over the moon. Either way in the end I am not going to sweat it though because I am healthier and happier now then I have been a long number of years. As time goes on the number on the scale is less of what I focus on. Too busy enjoying life and exploring my new physical freedoms and limitations.

Keep some of your old clothes as you shrink out of them. It will make a nice pic holding them up next to the new you in the future.

You described me perfectly but I will add that not only was I a binge eater I used to plan it and if I didn't have my binge food in the house I would go out and get it. I was constantly eating in front of the t.v. I would start with cheez-its and soda and then work my way up to ice cream. This was a nightly ritual for a lot of years. I had to do a 6 month insurance required diet in order to get the band and it was really hard at first. I used to go watch tv in bed just to be on another floor away from the food. Just before my surgery I attended a class put on by my weight center called "Hungry Head". It was a real eye opening experience for me. It taught me about triggers and just how bad of a binge eater I was. I am post-op now and I have fully embraced the life change and more importantly head hunger is no more. It is impossible for me to binge now even if I wanted to. Sure I still have ice cream every so often but I have learned moderation with all things. There are times I think about where I am now compared to where I once was and I am amazed at how much I've changed not just physically but mentally. I wish I could bottle it up and share it with others. Believe it or not I found that talking to myself helped a great deal. Identifying your triggers and then do what you must to avoid them until it takes little or no effort to disregard them.

Same here I was told 4 to 6 weeks and at that he wanted to let the steri strips fall off on their own.

Certainly nothing wrong with taking your time and ponder all the options. Just do not let others decide your life for you. As for cold feet it is perfectly normal. I had reservations right up until I got wheeled into OR and my Surgeon asked me if I was ready. I spent about 8 months researching this and spent another 6 thanks to the insurance required supervised diet. Even after all that time I still got nervous going in. In the end though I wouldn't change a thing.

Sorry you've had a bad go of it but it sure sounds to me you are blaming the tool for the shortcomings of your Doctor and his Staff. As for the sweet spot it does exist. Maybe not for you or maybe because of incompetent Doctors you had were just no help in finding it. Telling people not to get the lapband is just plain wrong based on your poor experiences with your Doctor and it sounds to me like you want to blame everything on the band. Your Doctor failed you...not the band. Have you looked for another Doctor? I think the take away from this thread is: Not only is it important to research the various surgical options but it's also wise to research the facility and Surgeon before diving into it. There a plenty who are out to make a buck!

My Wife knows of the site and being pre-op I have invited her to join in a couple of times but she says "no, that is your thing".

Everyone has a different story but sound similar..... I had once lost 174lbs then gained it all back plus another 90+. I went from 393 to 219 then up to 488 all in a 10 year period. Now I'm not sure what your circumstances are and who is telling you what but the way I see it is, you are the one to carry the weight and you are the one to live with the choices you make.

Failure is purely a state of mind. It does not matter if you fell down 5 times as long as you got up 6 times.

I am actually fighting some dehydration right now. My Doc called me on Friday and told me my labs were off. Also I am now taking Iron supplements as that is low. Now I know why I've been tired and cold a lot lately.

I believe you mean NSV which means Non Scale Victory. Example: Scale has not moved in weeks but my pants feel so much looser.

Probably 5 out of the 7 days I step on the scale. I do weigh myself far to often but then I look at it this way. If I were to weigh myself only once a week and then on that particular day I do weigh in and the scale happens to be up because of Water weight I would feel a little deflated. At least weighing in every day gives me an idea of water weight fluctuation and it keeps me focused.

Write a letter to your future self only to be read when you hit goal. Put all your thoughts and dreams in a letter and seal it and do not open until goal. Tell yourself the good, the bad and the ugly. I created a thread about this yesterday but thought it might be worth mentioning here.

Seems no matter where I eat out or what I have I am guaranteed to have that scale go up the next morning. It is very frustrating because it seems even a house salad at a Chili's or something will make the scale go up. Damn Water weight kills me at times.

I don't touch it or any beer for both reasons the carbonation and the calories. Same goes for soda. I haven't had a drop since Apr 2012. I was never a big drinker to begin with but I missed having a Guinness on St Patties day this year. I know I could have it but I made my choices and plan to stick to them.

Steak is a tricky one for me as well...

Congratulations!! I've trying to get through the Summer with same 3 pairs of shorts that I have. Not looking good. Starting to look like I am wearing canvas bags. Love losing weight but I have never been one for clothes shopping.

I would tell myself to start learning to chew slow and not drink while I eat.

I actually love the new 'normal'. spot on about the eggs Guy. Usually just plain scrambled go down fine but as soon as I start mixing it will other stuff I have issues. I actually love the fact I am learning more about foods thanks to my band it also helped brighten my horizons on the various choices available rather then eating the old junk food I used to woof down. Funny thing the band. I would have thought an English Muffin would be hard to eat but no I have no issue with that but I try and eat a pita wrap....nothing but troubles toasted or not. Only thing I miss now and again is a nice Guinness from the tap.

I asked myself right up until they wheeled me into OR and said "OK, we're going to put you under now". My Surgeon looked down at me and said "Are you ready?" I said "let's both have a great day today" and asleep I went. Perfectly normal to be nervous. I would do this over in a heartbeat. Good luck!!

I told just about everyone and because of my weight everyone I told was very supportive at least to my face. 488lbs at 45 yearsold I was a walking time bomb and this was for me and life longevity. I was and am beyond the point in my life where I could care less what anyone thinks about me with exception to my wife and parents. I at time do wish I never told certain people. My old Boss who has since left the company actually asked me straight out while I was preop "what are you going to do about the loose skin when you lose all the weight". He asked me that in front of a lot of other people in the Office. I also had a co-worker come back from a two week vacation look at me again in a wide open office and say "what, you didn't lose all the weight yet?". I would think long and hard about who and when you want to tell because once it's out there it cannot be taken back. Also, get used to people asking you for constant updates on your progress cause it will happen. Best wishes,,