leatha_g

Good luck Val! I'm very sorry to hear you'll have to undergo another surgery, but once it's all positioned correctly you'll be so glad!

Awesome news!!! I'm very happy for you both!

All of the above is true, however, I have heard from others that BCBS of Texas seems to be quite a bit tougher on their approvals. Many have to go under a one year Dr monitored weight loss effort before they will approve. In general, UHC seems to be less stringent. Good luck!

:cool: Very bad news indeed. I'm really sorry to hear this. You deserve so much better!

The dilemma there is that the 'DR' is IN network, but the actual facility is not contracted with ANY insurance. They accept 'out of network' benefits.. or, that's the way it used to be.

I did have the problem of returning GERD if I tried to skip my Prilosec before, however, with this new band, I have managed to get completely off the Prilosec that I have taken since the late 90s. Sounds like your problem could be a mixture of things, but definitely let your esophagus rest for a couple of days and if this doesn't get better, you might want to see your doctor. Sorry to hear you had this problem.

Glad to hear all went well and you're back on the road to complete this journey!! Good luck with you new band!!

Some never go anywhere without a plastic bag/barf bag somewhere nearby. In fact, you aren't SUPPOSED to be PBing all that often. It's not good for your band and certainly not good for your esophagus, however, it DOES happen. More to some than others, so it doesn't hurt to be prepared. You never know where it's going to happen.

Dr Veninga's office has flyers for Capital One's cosmetic loan program. Probably others do also.

I can't think of anyone who deserves such a neat experience more. You have done such a great job of taking care of your band and in turn, it is taking care of you. I truly believe you SHOULD be honored in such a way. This is your way of shouting from the rooftops how great it is to regain your life through healthy deliberate weight loss. I am very proud of you and I hope you have a ball with this chance to show off your new bod! YOU GO GIRL!

75lbs in 22 months... hmm, wonder where I would be without the band??

Those foods aren't usually 'hard' proteins. Which is why the docs say, no snacking between meals. Protein first, veggies next, anything else IF you still have room.

I've had mine replaced. No problems whatsoever, so far. Haven't lost alot of weight since, either. lol

It works for me. Do you have Adobe Acrobat reader installed? It is an Adobe file. Hmm.. otherwise, I'm not sure why it wouldn't open. Let me know..

Besides, this is for life. If you had filled it the WHOLE 4cc's, you'd have no more room to fill later.:eek Check this link out.. there is a photo of different sized bands. You can see the bladder and visualize it better, maybe. http://www.gisurgery.net/OverviewObesityBariatricSurgery.pdf

Just another thought. How fast did you hope to lose? You do know that lower BMI will have a slower weight loss, right? Are you eating half or less of what your NORMAL intake was before being banded? Are you exercising? It is quite common for the first fill to not be all that noticeable. If you receive a fill and don't show any loss and are doing all those other things correctly, then I'd ask for another fill. Sometimes, it takes up to 3 or 4 fills to get restriction, especially if you don't have alot of fat around your tummy to begin with. It will come.. patience. Also, Dr Ren is a very highly acclaimed band doctor. She has great results and many very happy patients. Trust her, she knows what she's doing.

How does one get diagnosed with insulin resistance? Do you have to see an endocrinologist? From what I've read, I'd almost bet this is part of my problem too, but I've never once had a doctor mention it to me. Just asking..

This is actually quite laughable. or maybe my brain is totalled from my mercury intake! On top of having Lunch to Go Chunk Light Tuna everyday while I'm at home and working in the office; I have crabcakes sometimes 2-4 times a week on the road while I'm away from home! (They're usually on the appetizer list and I've become quite conossieur of crabcakes across the country since I travel and they're easy to eat with the band.) Not to mention the excellent Mahi Mahi, crabcakes and baked scrod the Schwans man brings me at home! What's really funny about this is that used to, a tuna sandwich once in awhile was my normal intake of ANY kind of fish! Have I changed my eating habits OR WHAT??

That's a first! But you're exactly on the right track!

Darn.... thanks for explaining that. Here I thought I was doing a GOOD thing for my weight, but no wonder I can't remember my own name!! lol. Guess it'll be chicken for lunch today...

That's great!

Hmm... I've been taking the Lunch to Go Chunk Light Tuna to work EVERYDAY.. am I correct in thinking this says THAT is okay or no?? So much information.... this tuna, that tuna.. oy!

I had a barium swallow yesterday just to make sure everything is where it should be. Of course, I've had a slip in the past and been re-banded. Due to having been through that, I would think it would be very normal to be concerned about that. Thankfully, the radiologist said everything looks perfect, not even any pouch dilation (whew!). I felt like such a baby when he was over and done in less than 5 minutes and so sure everything was perfect, but I just needed the reassurance for myself. You're perfectly normal and this too shall lessen and lessen as you get adjusted to your new band.

Plano here!

my life is absolutely 100% better with the band than without. i really don't have an excessive gas problem and don't generally have a lot of pains. if i do a lot of pulling, tugging, bending, etc, i know the band is there. occasionally it gets tender, but it's a small price to pay compared to my life before it. before the band, the fat around my stomach limited my quality of life as did the excess fat around my thighs and buttocks, even my shoes are smaller and i can wear 'real people' shoes today. i can't begin to imagine going back to life without, however, i have had my band 'un-restricted' and i found it very strange to be 'wide open' and able to eat ALL i wanted. it was very scary to return to that state. i also found that i was not 'cured' from overeating or picking the wrong foods. i had my band replaced, but had i been left without restriction or no band for an extended period of time, i doubt very seriously that i would have been able to maintain the weight i had lost. i really wish you peace with your band or your choice to remove it! it would be a fight to the finish for me, i think.