SandyM

Alot of it depends on their requirements. I have health advantage BCBS of Arkansas and mine required monthly appts with my pcp and after that, it went really fast. Like weeks. Of course during that 6 months, I had my psych eval and met all of the other requirements. So, it really depends alot on you. Good luck, stay on top of it. I also heard, that if I had missed any of the 6 month appts with pcp, I'd have to start all over. Again, it depends on your insurance requirements and how fast you get everything pulled together.

Me too! I'm going to start now. Damn I look good! Lol.

This is the way I see it. In my younger days, I was in a hurry and would diet hard and wanted to lose 15 to 20 lbs in a month and get it done. Alot of times I did just that and it always came back and with a vengence. This time I'm in no hurry to get to my goal. As long as I show a healthy steady progress each month, being 3 to 5 lbs per month, I feel pretty good about it. I try not to get discouraged when I have a stall for a week or fluctuation or such. Its just part of it. I'm in it for life now and know that nothing good comes quick or easy. That being said, I'll take my fills or no fills as needed. I don't really like the idea of running back and forth to have unfills cuz I was in too big of a hurry. I know that alot of the work is still mine. I like stated above notice when I don't do well I look back and it was because I ate off plan or didnt exercise as I know I'm supposed to. It just makes me kick myself in the rear and work harder. Thats the whole gist of this is changing our lifestyles, right?

I do the premier protein from SAMS club.

Yep, mine is alittle close there too. Its usually ok, but sometimes and certain bras give me more problems.

I know. I hear alot of mixed reviews here. Last time I went to doctor she said I could have it if I opted but she wasnt sure I really needed it. I'd lost sufficient weight for the month and I wasnt hungry between meals. I opted to not take the fill. I don't necessarily feel I'm at green I only have 2.5 cc in my band. Of course, I also have the plication. But hey, I'm doing good and I know I can get a fill if I start getting hungry any sooner than 4 hours. Thats really what you are trying to accomplish is be able to go meal to meal without the hunger and overwhelming need to snack.

I know. I get so excited when I drop a size

And, sometimes it takes a little longer for the fill to settle in and really be what its supposed to be. If that makes any sense. Just be careful, I know the stuck episodes suck.

You will find that every surgeon is different. I've even heard of people with no post op diet which I cant imagine. Just do what your surgeon tells you and you should do good.

Good for you!

Great. You'll need that. I don't know if you are private insurance, but alot of them require you have weight loss programs for several months before approving the band. My pcp was also great. I cant wait til I see him again and show off my progress.

Yeah, but I sure do dread next year when the copays go up. Ugh!!!

Talk to your nutritionist. You may be taking in too few calories and slowing your weight loss down.

I'm so proud for you.

It really depends on you and what you do. I do home health and had surgery on Friday and went back to work Monday. It was about 2 days too soon for me. Wish I'd taken 2 more days. I had lapband with plication and hernia repair. So, could be the amount of stuff I had done. I dunno.

You look great. Very handsome.

You guys are starting a great journey. Take measurements of your body as you are likely to see changes there even when you don't see them on the scales. I wish I had done this. Good luck.

I had both and have only 2.5 cc in my band and am losing fine and feel even though I'm not in the green zone yet, I have more control of my hunger than I ever have. I'm undecided if I'll get more fluid in my band or not as this seems to be working fine. Carolinagirl had band and plication and has never had a fill and has lost a lot of weight. She is my hero.

I'm at 2.5 and I believe I could be tweaked but that's about it. Last visit I opted for no fill since I was doing so well. I have a 10 cc band

LOL, Well I weighed a boulder, but I'm slowly getting there. Just kidding. I love this site:))))

Sounds like they have confidence, so relax. They go through this alot more than we do:)

I would think they won't do the surgery without insurance approval unless you have cash to pay for it or unless they have already talked to you about a financial arrangement.

I had approval in 3 days after my surgeons office got my letter from my pcp and surgery 2 weeks later. Relax, it'll happen. Just remember the surgeons office is masters at dealing with the insurance on this and they don't make any money until they do the surgery. As for the psych exam....piece of cake. My surgeon told me this is just a formality that he wished he could get rid of but unfortunately the insurance companies want it. It was a total waste of time but it satisified the rules.

37 lbs in 4 months is a very healthy weight loss. Slower is better and my surgeon only recommends 4 to 5 lbs a month once you get into onderland. I say just keep doing what you are doing and enjoy the nice slow ride.

I saw my doc on Monday thinking I would get a fill. Not sure how I feel about it, but weight loss is acceptable and I had the option of to fill or not to fill and chose not to cuz I felt I needed to be following more of the rules. Fills won't stop you from cheating and eating around the band and you certainly don't want to be too tight.