angiewin

Hahaha! Man in the boat! I'm sorry, I had to laugh at that one :)

I will be getting my LB on 12/01/11. They gave me a choice of 11/17/11, and there was no way I could juggle work, and family stuff around in preparation in that little amount of time. Here we go

Yes, I have a pre-op appointment at my surgeon's office, and I will most likely get my surgery date. Not sure if I want to get my surgery done right away or wait until after all the stress of the holidays are over. I have a lot of running around to do as it is, and come the end of November, it's at least doubled. Decisions, decisions......

Flintstones complete chewables with Iron.

That makes no sense at all. Not sure how you could sustain yourself on that. I would call the dietician back, and ask if they misunderstood what your needs were for now. My insurance doesn't require a medically supervised diet, but when I spoke to my dietician, she gave me guidlines for an 1800 calorie diet until I get to 10 days before surgery. That's when I would start the liquid diet. She also said that's what she would also give me if I were to do a 3 - 6 month supervised diet.

I work in a totally different field, but I completely agree with you. When someone doesn't bother to show up without calling, they are my last priority. It is rude and inconsiderate. I am currently on a cancellation waiting list to get into a pain clinic for some shots in my neck to treat 3 bulging disks. My actual appointment is Dec 6th. I will be there with bells on whether they can get me in sooner or not.

I know I shouldn't be, but that's one of the things I'm afraid of. I'm like clockwork as well, except for when I'm really sick or something. In fact, I started my period the day of my six week check up after having my twins. I counted it out on a calendar, and it was right in line of where it would be if I didn't get pregnant. Go figure!

Yay! Good for you!

I always get a period when my body is over-stressed. Having surgery is a lot of stress on the body.

Back in June, I was all ready to do this. Got my psych, got my sleep study and would have probably had WLS by the end of August. I then went to a horrible so-called support group meeting in my area, got scared, and left the meeting not wanting any type of surgery, and thinking I could do this myself. After about 3 months, a lot of thinking and gaining nearly 10 more pounds, I came to my senses and called my surgeon to start the rest of the pre-op steps. Maybe you just need to take a few months to think about it, start making small changes in your lifestyle. I know that since August, I have started making a lot of better choices in regards to my health. Though, my surgery won't be for another month or so, I've started to phase myself into my pre-op diet, and am doing other things as though I've already had my surgery. For instance, I got back on my treadmil and I started eating off small plates with baby spoons. I haven't been perfect, but I'm doing a lot better than I was two months ago. It's your life, your body, and your decision.

That's a question you need to ask your surgeon. Some allow it, some don't.

Depends on your insurance. I've heard Medicare pays for the surgery, but you have to pay for fills out of your pocket. My insurance covers everything except for my $300 yearly deductible, and the $200 consult with the dietician. Good thing cause, I just got my insurance statment for having my initial labs done. I didn't have to pay anything cause I had already satisfied my deductible, but my insurance company was charged $1750. That's just over $100 for each vial of blood they took out of my arm. $1700 to take MY blood My surgeon had me call my insurance company with a whole list of questions as to what is covered and what is not. Maybe ask your surgeon what they will require you to do, and then ask the insurance company if it's covered.

My doc's office told me the reason why they want you to limit it the first few weeks is that they don't want you to become dehydrated.

Well, things have gone pretty fast since my PCP sent my 2 yrs of medical records. I'm pretty fortunate with my insurance that I only had to have a phych, and meet the over 40 BMI requirement. No pre-approval needed. Most requirements were from my surgeon. My first appointment with him was on 09/21/11, my birthday, and I just got a call from his office scheduling a pre-op appointment on 10/31. The woman I spoke with said that since I'm having the LB, I should get my surgery date when I come in for my appointment. When I spoke with the nurse on my 09/21 appointment, she told me right around Thanksgiving and definitely before Christmas. I guess she was right. Still scared and excited

My doc wants us to limit it to 2 -3 cups a day. I used to drink a ton of coffee, like over a pot a day, but I'm good now. I think the reason I'm okay now is that I started sleeping with a CPAP, and I now have tons more energy than I had just a few months ago. My doc makes you do a sleep study, and I'm happy that he did. My insurance only requires a psych, but I had to do a lot of stuff for my surgeon. I don't mind. Now, I'm just patiently awaiting a date.

Go YOU!! and GO TIGERS!!!

Aren't you supposed to go back on liquids for a few days after a fill? I haven't had my surgery yet, but when I went in for my consult with the dietician, she told me, and gave me written instructions telling me to go back to liquids for up to a week after a fill due to swelling. This might be the reason you're having your current problems. Ten years ago, I probably would have reacted the same way you did with the PA. Since you're only three years younger than I am, I can't say age has anything to do with it. It must have to do with having an autistic child and getting the run around for years that has made me less sensitive to what other folks say. I might not have said anything right then because I tend to mangle what I intend to say when I'm upset, but I probably would have went home, collected my thoughts, and called to complain. You and/or your insurance company are paying good money for these services, and you have the right not to be treated like crap. Have you sought out a support group. Like I said, I haven't had my surgery yet, but I've gone to several support group meetings. My surgeon even has one at his office once a month. Chances are someone who has been in your shoes will be there, and can give you some advice first-handed. Good luck to you!

Had my EGD yesterday. Doc said things looked pretty good. He took a biopsy, and the nurse said it was probably to check for H. Pylori. So, now it's just a waiting game. Now to decide on how many weeks to take off from work. I have a lot of sick time saved up, but don't want to take too long. Afraid of getting lazy, and afraid of not wanting to go back to work.

I went back and forth between LB, the sleeve and Roux-n-Y for a while. What made me decide on the LB was the fact that you have to change all those bad habits from the beginning in order to be successful. That, along with not feeling comfortable with unneccessary changes to my anatomy. Only 30% of bypass patients dump. With the bypass, many folks can cheat and still lose weight because they have that benefit of malabsorption, and don't suffer the consequences of making poor food choices. Then after about 18 months, they start to gain the weight back because they've made few if any lifestyle changes. Though, my insurance only requires a pysch eval before surgery, I made myself start a diet and exercise plan a few months before my surgery, which I believe will help me in the long run. Hope this makes sense.

So, I finally decided on the LapBand. Started this 4 months ago, and have been taking my time. Even had a month there where I convinced myself not to have any surgery. Long story. Finally had my counsult at the surgeon's office last week. At that time I was still going back and forth between LB,and RNY. I think I was leaning toward the RNY for all the wrong reasons such as less maintenance, faster weighloss. I figured that I needed something that would make me change my habits from the beginning in order to be successful. Not saying that a RNY is easy, but from what I've heard from folks, and read, you have to follow the rules with a LapBand, or it won't work. Things are going pretty quickly now. As long as my EGD and labs come back okay, I should be having the surgery around the first of November.