lovex5

Are any other secret keepers interested in a private facebook group?

i'm not sure what to do. i don't want to tell anyone but on the other hand i'm proud and excited about lapband and want to share the good news. after hearing about people whose friends abandoned them i'm not sure. i don't have many friends to begin with. i also wonder about how my family will react. our other issue is child care. if we get my mom to watch them i wouldnt feel right not telling her what's going on. plus if God forbid something happened in surgery they'd be really upset that i didn't tell them. i think the main reason i'm worried is fear of not losing weight. if people know i've had surgery and then i don't drop weight i'd feel like a loser, and not the good kind of loser.

yvonne74 you have to really stay on top of tricare! they don't like me because i worked in medical insurance for several years and i've called them on several of their mistakes. i had a major surgery a couple years ago and they asked for some info from me that was not needed at all. it took me months going round and round with them for them to finally pay. i hope you can get everything straightened out with them. also, did you ever speak with anyone regarding your benefits for surgery? if so, and they quoted you on a certain amount that they arent honoring you may be able to get that call retrieved. when i worked for bcbs they paid many claims that the reps had misquoted. one girl nearly got fired for incorrectly quoting a bariatric surgery as being covered at 100% of the allowed amount. turns out that person did not even have bariatric coverage on her policy but because she was quoted those benefits bcbs had to pay the bill. good luck to you!

i have not had surgery yet but everything is lined up for me to possibly have it late may/early june. i have lost some weight since jan 1. i was 255 and started cutting down portions to about half what i had been eating. i still ate whatever i wanted including a small dessert (small coffee and 1 gs thin mint or small brownie, etc) some nights. by march 1 i hit 235. so i lost 20lbs in two months just by slashing portions. i was lazy and didn't exercise either. that's all fine and good but my loss has stopped. the lowest i reached was 231 but as of today i'm back at 235. i want the band because although i'm doing good at portion control i still binge on occassion. i'm hoping that between therapy and knowing i'll get sick if i overeat i can overcome this battle and lose the weight for good. but yes i think for some people they can comfortably lose that way. i belonged to a group doing a religious diet that encouraged prayer vs eating a lot. it continued to work for many of them, even those who lost 100s, and they swore no exercise was involved. for me though it obviously stopped working.

great job congrats and thanks for sharing! this is really encouraging to me!

i need to start taking biotin again. i lost a lot of hair after my last child was born in summer 2010. it seems like it just stopped last summer but my hair is still really thin. i'm curious if it would help to cut my hair? i've been considering going short and now may be a good time. i appreciate everyone sharing their experiences!!

do lapbanders experience the same hair loss as those who have rny or sleeve? makes me a bit nervous to think about it since my hair is already really thin.

you're exactly right. i was just discussing this with my husband. i did ask the np if the people who fail are just not trying. she did say that with some of them yes, she suspected that was the problem. i cant see risking my life in any surgery and then not using a tool i'm being blessed with.

i had my first appt wednesday and met with the bariatrics nurse practitioner. i was asking her if they've seen a decline in bands thanks to sleeve. she said yes and went on to tell me that the surgeons there don't like bands because they arent seeing results like with the other two options of rny and sleeve. she was telling me that she wants to make sure i understand i wont be losing 100lbs with the band. huh? i have heard of several people losing a good deal of weight (100+) by really working the band. i'm frustrated at the attitudes people seem to have toward lapband. should i go ahead and get over it? does anyone have a positive attitude toward the band?

i want it but my insurance will only cover the sleeve at a military treatment facility. i have very rare/delicate medical issues due to which i don't feel comfortable being treated at certain places. if i was able to have the sleeve done at my medical facility of choice i believe i'd probably have it done. i have seen so many people do great with the sleeve and i'm truly hoping i will do just as well with lapband.

hmm i guess i need to start weaning myself off spicy foods because i do love them. thanks for taking time to reply!

hey guys. please forgive me if i'm posting this in the wrong area. i want to ask a question to anyone who has had an ulcer. did you ever feel pain in your left shoulder blade? i have suffered with gerd for about 2.5 years. about 4 months ago i started having pain in my upper left abdominal area. my pcp ran some labs and ordered an xray but everything came back fine. they chalked it up to ibs. well about a month ago i started having pain in my left shoulder blade. it showed up after i had been horsing around with and picking up one of my kids so i figured it was a pulled muscle. the pain came back again yesterday. i did read online that left shoulder blade pain can be from several things one of which is ulcers. of course i've also read that it could be heart related too so i will be scheduling a dr's appt tomorrow. i had my first set of lab work done today which included testing for h-pylori. i'm just really curious now if i may possible have an ulcer. i would appreciate to hear from anyone who has experienced an ulcer regarding symptoms, trigger foods, etc. thanks so much!

thanks ladies!

i'm definitely not a nurse but i hope to be one some day. i am currently taking classes to become a medical assistant. if i like that i plan to move forward at some point and start nursing school. good luck with your surgery!

hello everyone! i have been a silent guest on yall's forum for about a year now. i've been considering surgery for a while now. back in december i decided to ask my pcp for a referral for wls. i received the ok around christmas but didn't really get started until last week. so far i have attended a seminar and have my first appt with bariatrics today. i'm quite nervous but anxious to see if i'm a good candidate for surgery. i have gone back and forth between lapband and vsg for a while, so i'm still not 100% decided. i will say that i've learned a lot reading about struggles and success here at lapbandtalk. anyway just wanted to say hi and introduce myself.