Vicki J

Subtle persuasion is the key my friend. Glad things worked out on the orientation. You'd think they would try to fill the empty slots but they only do that for the actual surgery.

Has anyone thought that maybe this doctor is trying to see if Tom is willing to work with the band or that maybe they're trying to point out that the band is a tool? The doctor might also be worried that if they tighten the band too much with this lack of control that Tom might be in immense danger of really hurting himself. I know that sneaking up on the sweet spot is a pain but there is a reason for it. Kaiser had us loose 10% of our overall weight not only to shrink our livers but to show them that we could commit ourselves to this lifestyle.

Sorry to sound so harsh but it's hard work to do this and it's time to re-evaluate why you did this.

Vicki

Trompuda - Call patient services or the bariactric department and ask them if they cover it. You can also go to your HR and get a copy of your insurance coverage. These two steps will not only give you something to do but will answer it completely.

To my knowledge unless you have something drastically wrong (which you should know) they don't stop you from WLS. I do know that if they find things like the high ferritin reading they found with me, that they will investigate it prior to continuing. I'm glad they do this because they want us to succeed.

It takes so long to get through the program because as mentioned above they want to make sure you're educated and physically capible of going through it. Also, they are so bombarded with people like us wanting WLS and they only have a few surgeons doing it. Lastly, this surgery is viewed as elective.

Good luck with your journey.

You will be amazed at how quickly the time flies during that 6 months. Then you get the call that they are scheduling you for surgery and everything goes into high gear.

Call the bariactrics department. Our bariactric department in So. San Francisco said that the psych appointment needed to be with THEIR psychiatrist. They wouldn't let us do it closer to home. I'm not sure about the nutritionialist either. So my suggestion is to either wait until orientation or to call bariactrics. There is no reason to do all of this and then have to do it over again.

Keep in mind that ALL the Kaisers have their own little methods of operation. So this may be ok with your's. Just check before you do too much more.

Vicki

Boopie - Congratulations! Great follow through. I know I had the same problem trying to find out if they did LB surgery last year. You think it would be easier to find out. It's also good that they are doing the sleeve. Anything is better than GB in MHO. I still would have gone with the band because it worked just as well as my GF sleeve surgery. I like that all my insides are the same.

Again congratulations and good luck!!! Keep us posted.

Vicki

Gina - Have you thought about getting a TENS machine? You can buy them online and they are for pain relief. I have a friend who has had back surgery and also suffers from bouts of pain. She uses one all the time. I have one I use for my arthritus.

Vicki

Karri68 - I know that it's frustrating having to deal with micro-fills but I'm sure he's trying to make sure you don't have any problems with your band. My surgeon was very conservative after the first fill and I too was very frustrated. I had to drive 3 hours each way and usually take a whole day off of work to get these fills. I am, however, happy now that he did it that way because he nailed my sweet spot and I have never had any PBing or slimming. I've never even been really stuck.

Talk to him about your frustration. I also had to learn how to word what I was trying to say because my doctor was not understanding what I was trying to communicate. He would see that I was loosing weight at a good rate and I was telling him I was hungry. Most of his "hungry" patients were eating to appease that hunger. I had to point out to him that he couldn't go by weight loss because I was still working the 1200 calorie diet and exercising and OF COURSE I would loose weight. Armed with that information he changed what he was doing and listened to when I told him I felt I needed a fill. They get a small amount of time with you and have to deal with many different personalities so they have to kind of see everything in a condensed version. They, unfortunately, also get all of those who think the band will do it all. So it's a fine balance. Of course, there's always the jerk surgeon thrown in there too but I like to think they are rare. :smile2:

Hang in there. Your sweet spot is in your future. I know this is a frustratingly slow process but once you get there you'll be off and running.

Vicki

I had surgery 6 months after my orientation on June 6, 2007. My advice for you is to first get online and check for appointments on your Kaiser page. The only one that won't show up is the phsych appt. I didn't check to see if my actual surgery date showed up but they called me and trust me I didn't forget. LOL - That way you won't miss any appointments because of someone else's error.

The second thing I would suggest is to be aware of what appointments you're supposed to have. You can then call on a regular basis and ask if they've had cancellations. They don't call people to try and fill those (except for surgery) so frequently they have them available. This should help you move along a little faster. Don't be rough on them, they are very overwhelmed.

Loose the weight required NOW. They really like to work with people who get the job done because it demonstrates to them that you are willing to follow the program. As you have probably read on different pages, there is a vast difference in what doctors want from their patients. Kaisers attitude is "We don't have to work with the people who don't want to follow the program because we have so many people who are beating down our doors that are willing to follow it." Yeah, that's a quote.

Other than that, remind yourself of how much you're saving by having insurance. There are so many people out there that aren't as lucky as we are. It's a pain to have to wait but it's worth it in the end.

PM me if you have any questions I can answer or just ask on the forum and there are several people who can help you.

Good luck on your journey.

Vicki

To those of you just starting out, use the phrase "just because I can doesn't mean I should". Just because you can eat a lot or eat something you were told you shouldn't doesn't mean that you should eat it. You can still practice eating like a bandster and begin loosing weight now. It's harder, I'll give you that but it does put you that much farther ahead of the game.

I couldn't say what dimmed my desire for junk food. The band dims the desire to eat between meals and I think that just weaning myself from the sweets made it where my body adjusted to wanting the good stuff. No, I'm not perfect. I don't want to be. However, when you can only eat a small amount you learn what works the best. Dense Protein keeps you full faster without having to cut the circulation off in your stomach. :thumbup: Carbs don't last a long time and you'll be hungry sooner.

Absolutely do whatever your doctor says. I don't know why they are all different but they are. It's always good to error on the side of healing. I wasn't hungry for about 2 weeks after surgery. Just goes to show you how different we all are.

Heartfire - good to see you're doing well.

Vicki

Call the bariactric department or patient services and ask if they do the band. They should also tell you how to go about the proceedure for getting in the program. That's what I did up here in No. Cal.

I live with my band a little looser than most people. I do this because of the fickleness of the band. It does get tighter at certain times. Sometimes you can't figure out why. I also don't want to have to worry if I don't chew things to mush or eat a little faster. I still have my limits but I just don't want to have to stress out about each bite or what I eat.

I also found that restriction doesn't mean a throttle hold on my stomach. When I had this light bulb moment I stopped looking for it. I get satisfied now with a bandster amount. Sometimes I have to sit there and let my spoiled little girl inside quite down and realize I'm done. I love the taste of food and the hardest problem I have is telling myself that I need to take the rest home and enjoy it later. LOL

Being where I am has made it so I can enjoy almost anything I want but allows me the dimming of hunger to make the decission of what I want and not go on a rampage. It really takes the joy out of a good binge when you realize that you can only eat a little before you're full. It's kind of like laying on the floor kicking only one foot. Not very impressive and a waste of time. :cursing:

I would talk to him about not coming in if you don't need to. He probably does the "see you in 4-6 weeks" out of habit. Have a good talk with him and see what he says. Sounds like you're in a good spot for the time being. As another person on another sight says, "Ride it until the wheels fall off!"

Vicki

Ok, now I'm frustrated. I just lost everything I typed. :cursing:

April - I'm sorry that you had all the problems with Dr. Le. He is a funny sort. (Funny meaning peculiar sort of way not meaning humorous). He is one that you must direct with a gloved hand. Once he starts to communicate with the patient it seems to work better. This is a good example of different surgeons working better for different people. It's good to see you're back on track and at your sweet spot. You'll be kicking some serious butt now. :huh2:

Gina - You need to learn not to be worried about the people who diss people on this or any forum. Also, check out smartbandsters.com. This is a group that was started by a bariactric nurse when she had the band placed 10 years ago and there was no support groups in the US. The band hadn't been approved up here yet so she went to Mexico to have the surgery. You will see lots of successes, a few strugglers, and a huge amount of support. Also, it's nice having some long timers and a professional to answer your questions.

There are only 3 reasons for not loosing with the band. 1) medical reasons - thyroid, etc. 2) The placement of the band. 3) user error. This includes not having the right adjustment because it's up to the user to make sure they get to their sweet spot. Being too tight can lead to "soft food syndrome" which means that most people at this state are eating more calories then they think they are. You don't stay full on soft foods and a lot of people don't realize they are taking in so much. If you're too tight or too loose, you need to be a pain in the butt until they get you right. April did the right thing and went home to contact her surgeon and let him know what had happened at the ER and she got him to get her back on track. A lot of people just pout about it and don't take action. Sometimes it's a wait to get in. That's life. You need to get on your 1200 calorie diet and work REALLY hard until you get there or you need to accept that you won't loose weight while you're waiting.

I chose the band because 1) I didn't want anyone rearranging my insides. The chance of leaks scared me. 2) I'm one of the world's worst pill takers. I forget. So taking supplements is not a good thing. 3) I wanted something that could be adjusted so that if I needed to have something different I could get it done. If I get where I'm hungry 3 years out, I want to be able to get tightened. If I have a reason to need less Fluid in there, I want to be able to do that too. I would have gone GB if that is all I could do but give me another choice and I would probably have taken that.

With the band you can expect to loose between 4-8 pounds per month on AVERAGE. It sounds slow but it's healthy and when it's done it will seem like it wasn't that slow at all. All WLS end up about the same at 3 years.

Choose what you're comfortable with. It is an individual thing. If you want to PM me, do so. However, don't be afraid of the people with bad attitudes. They simply aren't worth the worry.

Vicki

luv2teech7 - Wow, you're doing great! 5 - 10 pounds per month puts you right in the expectation range. I know it seems slow right now but it will amaze you at how well you did when you look back on your journey. Keep going!

As far as going to your surgeon goes, I know for the first 6 months they like to keep an eye on you. However, if you're past that point, I would be talking to your surgeon about only coming in if you need to. My surgeon cut me loose at around 4 months out. I came in the next month for one more fill but haven't been back since. I have his email if I have a question and I can make an appointment if I need one. Talk to him. Hopefully he'll be reasonable.

Vicki

lachica39 - Wow what a great post! The insight into what's been going on was really something that you had to look deep inside yourself for. I'm sorry to hear about your Mom. Mine's been in and out of the hospital several times in the last couple of years but so far we've gotten her back on her feet each time <knock on wood>. It really makes things hard as far as thinking about yourself goes. But thankfully my band has done it's job and kept me on track.

The reason you don't have problems with cupcakes is that they don't clump as much. Darn it! At least if something gives us problems we have to think about it.

It looks like you have a great support team. That is so important. The fact that you're using them now and being honest with them and yourself will give you some great ammunition to be strong on this journey. I have to tell you how much I admire the soul searching you did and the fact that you acknowledged what was happening and formed a plan. That is such a hard thing to do.

You're going to do great with the band just because you're problem solving instead of trying to place the blame for it not working. You will get back on track faster than you think and it will help you loose all the extra weight.

Hopefully others who are having problems will read your post and be inspired to look at the whole truth of what's going on. This could be anything from eating the wrong foods to grazing to possibly being too tight or not tight enough. Like you they have to stop being afraid to fix the problem. Hats off to you and now we can watch you succeed in your journey.

Vicki

Hey Gina - Never say never. I occassionally indulge in the forbidden fruit but after eating my good meal first. Usually because I don't want to have my band make me regret eating too much I only eat a taste and surprisingly I'm totally happy with that. So just make sure that when you want your taste to take someone who will finish it or that you're comfortable walking away from it. DO NOT TAKE IT HOME! Taking home the good stuff is acceptable but not the treats.

I am doing great with the band! I reached goal about 3 weeks ago and I'm learning to live in maintainance. So far so good <knocking on wood>. One of the things I would say is to try and think of how the surgeon is receiving what you're trying to say. (Clear as mud, huh) What I mean is I had decided to continue doing the 1200 calorie diet with exercise until I reached my sweet spot. During one of my visits he told me that he didn't want to give me a fill because I was loosing weight. After a brief but bloodless battle he gave me a SLIGHT fill. I went home pouting because I was still hungry. At that point I realized that he didn't have the whole picture. The next visit started out the same but changed when I informed him that he couldn't go by my loosing weight. I told him what I was doing and that I would loose weight because of that. With this information he gave me what was his normal fill of .5 cc. From that point on I tried to think out my approach to the appointments so that he could know what was going on and react to all the information.

Other than that, living with the band for me has been easy. The worse thing that has happened to me is about a week ago I got ahold of some pork that was way too dry and it irritated my stoma for a few days. I spent that time trying to eat some soft foods/liquids and now everything is fine again. I have been really careful not to get too tight and throttle my stomach. Hunger isn't like it used to be and you really don't get that emergency feeling anymore once you get to the sweet spot. Of course, full isn't the same anymore either. You have to realize when you're satisfied rather than that "God I ate too much" feeling. It's a learning curve and you'll push it once in a while. Just try not to push too often and you'll be fine.

I live by the rule that I can have anything I want. Ok, I hear all the hard core banders out there yelling "What!!!???" The other side of that is that I also journal and when I see that if I eat something high calorie that I'm going to be hungry for the rest of the day, it usually is enough for me to decide I don't want it. I give myself 1200 calories. A calorie is a calorie but some of them come with not enough bulk. During my weight loss phase I used to limit myself to 1000 except for days when I wanted that little extra.

Be true to yourself. Your body is the most accurate calorie counter you can find. If you're burning more than you take in, you'll loose. Less, you'll gain. Don't look at this like it a punishment or you'll fail. This is the beginning of life for all of us. It feels so good to be on the skinny side.

Good luck on your surgery. Feel free to contact me whenever you have a question. Test new foods carefully.

Pam - Congratulations on the surgery tomorrow!!!! You're going to be so happy you did this. I had to go to SSF. I think they put our names in a hat and draw them out to choose who goes where. LOL - I'm not sure they know how they choose.

You're diet sounds just like the one at SSF. They even added a few more veggies for us. I lost 70 lbs on that waiting for surgery. It took them 6 months between orientation and surgery. The only reason I got in then was due to a cancelation so you're moving through the system pretty fast. Hopefully they will get where anyone who looses the required weight gets through fast.

Keep us posted on how you're doing. Good luck tomorrow!

Vicki

Hey all you Kaiser patients! It's good to see that the communication between us is going strong. For those of you who don't know me, I was banded on 12/12/07 by SSF Kaiser. I really feel for all of you who are running back and forth trying to get to the sweet spot. It'll happen though. I hit mine in May thank goodness. I agree with all of you about them getting someone up here to do the fills. I mean how hard can it be? I'm sure with a little training our PCP's can do it. I know that will NEVER happen. We must continue to give the "experts" their space. LOL

Well, anyway, congratulations to those that are on the band wagon and to those that are about to board.

Oh, as far as the sleeve goes, I have a friend who chose that way because of the fact that there was less follow-up needed. She's done really good. However, I have done just as well with the band. Ok, she has more sick leave than I do. Each one of us must choose which surgery is best for us. BUT - don't choose the surgery JUST because you might have to follow-up less. Research each one and find out if you're comfortable with the BADS as well as the goods. I don't think that malabsorbtion of GB is worth the less follow-up. This is just my humble opinion and the decision I made for myself. However, if I couldn't have gotten the band I would have been looking hard at the sleeve. GB would have been a last resort. Being obese was no longer a choice in my eyes.

Have a good Monday everyone!

Leisa - I always have time to talk. No worries there. When I started at Kaiser they had only been doing the band for about 5 months. What I decided was that they were more proned to wanting to do the bypass because they were more comfortable with it. Kaiser itself doesn't have a lot of their own statistics but the band has been very successful in aiding in weight loss. I myself have lost 126 pounds which is 100% of my excess weight. When I first saw my surgeon I had already lost more than 50 pounds (due to being on their pre-op for so long). He told me that he was very proud of what I had done but to not expect to loose much more. I asked him if he was saying this because the statistics said that. He said yes and I told him to hold onto his statistics because I was going to blow them out the window. At my pre-op appointment I had lost 70 lbs. I got the same remarks. I gave the same remarks. He now wants pictures. Kaiser at SSF is now starting to sing a different tune about the bands and at the last support group meeting I went to they were telling the bypass people that if they got where they could eat more food in the future and were gainig weight that they would have to have a revision. They said "but if you have the band it just a matter of adjusting it". The way they said it really made it sound like they were beginning to push banding.

The lapband will give whatever you want to work for. There are no magic pills in this world and you do have to follow the rules most of the time. Do I never eat the "wrong" foods? Sure I eat what is considered wrong. I had birthday cake just yesterday. Do I do it all the time? Not a chance. But if you don't allow yourself to live life you will be setting yourself up for failure. What I have found is that I give a lot of thought to those times I have something special which makes me slow down and enjoy it. I also don't have that "I've failed so I might as well give up" feeling afterwards. I still journal my foods because it makes me feel more secure in the fact that I'm not eating mindlessly. Weekends are the days that I don't journal. I'm usually not near a computer and carrying a notebook isn't me. LOL

The first thing I would do if I were you is get that thyroid adjusted. Hopefully they've got you on meds for it. It can cause more than just weight gain. I know it can cause lack of energy, depression and a bunch of other things. Make them fix that! Then I would go into the surgeon's office and TELL HIM what YOU ARE comfortable with. Ask him outright if he is uncomfortable with doing the lapband surgery. If he is, ask for another surgeon. They have more than one. This is your body and your surgery. The only way I personally would go with a bypass is if that is the only choice I had. It scares the c**p out of me. But that is MY opinion for me. I understand the lure of quick weight loss. But 126 pounds in 14 months is pretty quick in my opinion.

The second thing I would do is go online to www.smartbandsters.com. It is a yahoo group and it has a lot of people on there that have been so successful with the band and can give you the statistics to knock your doctor's socks off. There is also a bariactric nurse on there named Jessie that had her band placed 10 years ago in Mexico. She's great at answering questions.

There are very few reasons (unless medical) that people can't loose weight with the band. Everyone can eat around ANY WLS. The band has to be adjusted properly. My surgeon (Dr. David Le) was very causcious in sneaking up on the "right" fill. At first this frustrated me but now I'm glad he did. I have had no problems with my band. None! The only time it even speaks to me (scolding) is when I eat too fast, too much or something that is too dry. Otherwise I get the subtle signal of satisfaction that lets me know I'm done. This is restriction. A lot of people think that restriction is a stranglehold on your stomach. That's too tight.

As far as depression about missing foods goes, not really. My biggest thing is I like the taste of food. Sometimes when I'm really enjoying a meal I get angry because I can't over induldge like I used to. But I'm learning to stop being the spoiled child and remember that I can take it home and enjoy it again later. Because of how I'm adjusted I can eat almost anything. It has to be WAY overcooked for me to have trouble. Therefore, I don't "miss" anything. I don't eat very many sweets anymore by choice. After not having them for a while they surprisingly don't taste as good as I used to think they did. BUT if I want a small desert, I have it. Like I said, a calorie is a calorie. If you count them, keep them limited, the weight will come off. However, I got where I would look at that high calorie food and think to myself that there wasn't much there and I would rather be able to eat something with more volume. Now I'm just used to not having that stuff and the band controls the volume.

I think the only thing I had to do as far as getting my mind around it was to get where I believed it would work as I had heard. It does that. I also put it in my mind that during the period when I was waiting to be properly adjusted that I would have to continue to do the 1200 calorie diet in order to loose weight or just not worry about loosing weight until I was properly adjusted. That is an important thing because many people get depressed when they don't just magically start to loose weight. I made sure that the people who would be "watching" understood this. I also made sure that I was totally comfortable with my decission to do the surgery.

There are things that will come up in your life after surgery that you'll want to turn to food for. After WLS you won't be able to. I suggest that you get the Beck Diet Solution (book). It isn't a "diet" but a book that addresses why we eat like we do. I thought I was a real emotional eater and found this to be helpful.

Otherwise, I'm so happy with my band that I will have it with me for life. I take care of it so that I don't do a lot of throwing up or cause it harm. It's really easy to take care of it and have not PB'd yet. I would recommend the band for anybody. I wish they had had it sooner so that I would not have wasted so much of my life.

Get your facts together. Do this by doing as much research as you can. The next time you see your surgeon, confront him with the "facts" and take a stand. This doesn't mean go in there and take his head off. It means that you can tell him that you've throughly researched the surgery, made an educated decision and if he's not comfortable doing the surgery/follow-up you understand and would be happy to see another surgeon. Plain and simple. If he's not having much success with his banded patients, then maybe he's not good at banding or he's not good at educating them. I didn't rely on Kaiser because I knew they were in the infancy stage of banding. I made sure I got online and found out the answers to my questions. As a matter of fact, I don't think I've ever asked them a question. But they have to start somewhere.

Check out smartbandsters.com. Also, do a lot of research with your husband and arm yourself and make sure you are comfortable. You'll be ok.

If you don't mind my rambling style of writing, feel free to contact me anytime. You can PM me if you want too.

Take care and keep me posted. Ask any questions you want.

Vicki

Oh, I totally agree. Wasabubblebutt had a sleeve done after having problems with the band (as well as a great success with it) and she came back on here to tell everyone about how she was doing and to answer questions. The difference was the approach she took. She came back VERY careful not to make the band look like the BAD choice but to educate.

When this thread was opened it came off as a sales pitch. I'm sure the person who opened it believed they were doing the right thing but I, as well as other people, got the impression that it was in fact a my surgery is better than your's situation.

As I said earlier, my co-worker has had the sleeve done and is extremely happy with the results. I am extremely happy for her. She did what she felt was right for her and I did what was right for me.

Anyone who is looking into WLS and does not do their research is playing with a gun without knowing which end to point at the target. It usually only leads to disaster. I'm a firm believer that the important thing is to loose the excess weight no matter how you do it. Ok, let's put as long as it's a healthy way to do it. I would have done the GB if that is the only way to have lost the weight. That statement is made by someone who is TERRIFIED of that surgery. But I was more terrified of dieing.

Here's to WLS and a healthy outcome.

Please, please do go get a slight unfill. It may only take as little as .1cc to make things right but you will not only feel better, you will prevent having to take all the Fluid out.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Thank you Kat. That was very well said. I also wonder if the doctor in question also does bands and that is the reason that the paper work said to post on this site. THAT would make sense because most surgeons use one sheet instead of a sheet for each individual surgery. If not, it can ONLY be for the purpose of trying to convince people to do the surgery his office does.

As for how much time someone is off with the sleeve, my co-worker (who is an extremely work driven person) took two weeks off.

First of all you really need to baby yourself for a while and let things calm down. After having thrown up for so long or had reflux everything is HIGHLY irritated. One of the reasons that people who are too tight don't loose weight well is because they tend to eat "easier" foods like soft foods and they end up eating too many calories. They feel hungry all the time because soft foods don't stick with us well.

Once things calm down you can start like a new bandster and work your way to solid Proteins which will keep you full longer. But this will be a slow process.

As far as the stomach pains it could be several things. If your port flipped, it is possible that the stitches pulled loose or just pulled enough to irritate the area. Sometimes I get a pain in my port area because my pants waistline irritates it. You might try something like a body shaper to give you some support. I know they will probably be uncomfortable to sleep in but it's an idea. Get one that just give some support and not one that is too tight. Or you could try to put a pillow under your tummy if you are sleeping on your side for support. If you're having trouble with night time reflux, try sleeping inclined for a few nights, don't eat or drink within 2 hours of going to bed and maybe start taking some Prilosec to calm things down.

Now, having said all of this I want to clarify - I am not a medical person and these are just suggestions. I think that once you get back on the wagon your weight will start coming off. I have heard that when you get an unfill (as in having the port come loose) you may not have the signals quite as strong as before. You don't feel "full" after the band but you get a feeling of satisfaction. If this feeling isn't as strong, go to measuring your food and keeping track of when you ate. I also journal my food. This way you are pretty assured you're not overeating and this will also help with the PBing.

I hope my suggestions can help you. I can imagine how discouraged you must feel right now.

KimberC - There is a website called smartbandsters.com that you might find some help with the situation with your doctor on. They will also help with the other problems you're having (both of you). Both of these websites are very good for information.

Take care and keep me posted on how you're doing.

More importantly, if you wait 2 days you may find yourself dehydrated or aspirating stomach acid in the middle of the night. Both of these could lead to a trip to the emergency room and some possible disasterous consequences. You say that you have a young one that makes it difficult for you to make the trip to the doctor's office. How hard will it be if mommy is hospitalized.

I have fortunately never had to be stuck more than a couple of times and that only on the first fill. However, I can imagine how difficult this can be to go through. I would suspect that this is a incidence of needing an unfill instead of the virus because it started IN the doctor's office. But I am not a medical professional and neither are you so call. It may be a long drive but it is the lesser of the evils.

Also, if you get a small unfill now you might not need a total unfill later. Yeah, if you wait too long your stoma gets so irritated that they have to remove all the Fluid and wait several weeks for it to subside. Call your doctor.

I don't know for sure but I know that my daughter had some problems with depression and they wanted her to go to some sort of classes. I tried to call her prior to responding but she didn't answer. Whatever the reason for them requiring this it has caused her to not be able to go further into the process until she completes the classes.

Having said that, you are the only one that can determine if this is something that you need to address immediately. I would never advocate putting off help even for the band. I too have suffered from mild depression now and again but like you I can usually find out what's going on. If I were in your position, I would have to do some soul searching and determine what is the most pressing right now. If the depression is taking over your life, you should probably get the help. They will put the band in but it might be delayed.