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Houston, The only way you will know for sure is to check with your insurance company for your coverage criteria. My insurance is through United Health Care and for WLS they use Optum as a coordinator. My case manager from Optum told me they use your initial weight, and if you lose weight during your six month medically supervised diet you will not be disqualified from having surgery if you drop below the minimum BMI required per policy coverage. The coverage criteria for my employer requires a minimum BMI of 35 with one comorbidity and if you are at a BMI of 40 or greater no comorbidity is required. Good luck to you.

Brownrek, I hope you succeed at your goal of weighing less while being on a cruise. Maintaining, in my mind would be a victory. I hope you enjoy your Alaskan cruise. It is stunning. I went on one last year and plan to go back in 2015 and do the cruise and the railroad tour into Denali. Enjoy.

LeanMeanFightinMachine, Go with the sleeve. I currently have a band in and am waiting to have the sleeve performed. I have had my band since July '07. I was successful by lap band criteria as I lost 50% of my excess weight. For the last three years + I have been on prescription medicine for heart burn. I did not have this condition before I had my band. I had to have an endoscopy performed before the band and there was no irritation of my esophagus. I have experienced esophageal dilation of my pouch from my band being too full my band has prolapsed I have esophageal motility issues from my band that can only be fixed by the band being taken out. I had blisters inside my esophagus from irritation of the band due to heartburn I have thrown up more times in my life during this time period than I have for the other 40+ years I have even thrown up on Water My issues are not as severe as several who have posted here. I saw my doctor on Monday, August 19th, and asked him if I would be at a higher risk of heartburn from the sleeve since I currently experience it, and his reply was that "about 5% of his patients experience heart burn post sleeve." You do not lose as much weight as quickly with the band. Another factor to consider is, does your insurance company has one weight loss surgery criteria? If so, if you have problems later with the band, you might run into problems on getting approval for revision surgery. You want to make sure you choose the best option for yourself. Good luck with your decision and weight loss journey.

jmonique this link might be helpful to you. http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/10081-the-official-what-you-will-need-for-your-gastric-sleeve-surgery-thread/ There are others in the forum. Good luck with your surgery and weight loss journey.

It depends on the location of the stone and size. You wouldn't want it to get stuck and require a procedure to have it removed during your healing process. I would definitely let your surgeon know so he can decide if your surgery needs to be postponed until the stone passes. If he says it is okay for surgery, the fluids you get in the hospital may help it pass. The post-op pain meds should help with your stone pain. If your stones are from drinking iced tea, you probably have Calcium oxalate stones. Hope you get some relief and good luck with your surgery.

Usually the ins. co. will eventually approve sometimes it takes an appeal or two especially in your case where it is a device failure. Here is one link http://wlsappeals.com/ and Ihttp://www.obesityaction.org/educational-resources/resource-articles-2/weight-loss-surgery/insurance-obstacles-for-weight-loss-surgery-patients My ins. co. has a one wls but will approve another surgery if it is a device failure. My first surgery was not through my employer so my sleeve counts as my first surgery with them even though each will be covered by United Health Care. Makes you wonder sometimes how they determine coverage. Good luck.

Not this girl, like Miracle Whip lite. I tend to not follow the crowd. LOL. Patti, thank you for the recipe. Sounds great. When I make mine I used powdered mustard. Just like the flavor better.

I tried Candy Crush and didn't care for it. I know I am in in the minority on this one. Once I played it, then I got so many requests from friends for stuff. I found this article about how much money this game generates for it's parent company and found it to be an eye opener. http://www.huffingto..._n_3561658.html I used to play another game on FB all the time, and it started interfering with my workouts. Now I stick to words with friends.

Just reading this is giving me hope. I currently have lap band and want revision surgery to the sleeve. I have had severe heart burn even on Rx meds for it for over three years. One of my biggest fears is that it will be worse after I have my surgery. My doctor is aware of the heart burn, did an endoscopy and said I was still a viable candidate. Now I just need a surgery date.

Melissa, That is the diet I had when I had my lap band put in 2007. Clear liquids, no protein for one week. I was told it was to shrink your liver prior to surgery?

PrettyPuffy, If your band has been unfilled, it hasn't been doing what it is supposed to be doing anyway. You have no restriction. I still have my band in, but it has no Fluid in it. The only thing it is doing now is taking up space and causing me heart burn. My doctor plans on removing it and performing the sleeve in the same procedure. I am also at a BMI of 35. If my ins. co. has me do the 6 month diet, the earliest surgery time for me is December and it could go to January or February in 2014. I am worried also about gaining weight due to no restriction. I am trying to be very careful in what I eat and paying close attention. I don't want to have to lose any more weight than I already have on me. I am also in my 50's and worry about being a slower loser due to age and being a revision patient. At this point I am also not too far away from my original weight before getting my lap band. You might check with your ins. co. on their requirements. My employer's contract is with UHC and has a BMI of 35 with one comorbidity. If it is a determined to be a device failure the BMI may not need to be even at 35. My. ins. co. told me that they use your initial weigh in weight and if you drop below a BMI of 35 during the supervised diet, that will not disqualify from having surgery. Good luck.

Good luck Lily

Teaching mom, There are some sample letters on the forum. You might want to search for some of them. I agree with Arts, focus on your weight loss and how it interferes with your quality of life. Some have mentioned including photographs as well so they see that you are a person and not just a claim number. It makes it more personalized. Good luck. .

That's great news. Have to be sure the doctor's office uses the correct codes. Do you have any supervised diet criteria? Mine has a 6 month.

Jenni, I just got my passport last year for the first time and it took about four weeks. I did not pay the extra $$$ to expedite mine. I went to Walgreen's for my photo and to the post office to pay the money and have them send it off for processing. At my post office they only process them up until a certain time on Saturdays and if your name is not on the list then you have to come back a different day. You might check to find out the times they do this. The payment had to be in a cash or money order. No plastic. I don't think they take checks either, but don't remember for sure. This site http://travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html will give you a lot of info on prices and processing times. Good luck and happy travels.

I get to have a test very similar to that on Wednesday. Mine is called an esophageal motility study or manometry exam. Mine is to check for swallowing problems and check the sphincter muscles between the esophagus and stomach. I have heart burn issues so that is why this test is ordered for me. They record your swallowing Water for 10 segments. Should be a "fun time" with a ng tube and lap band and trying to swallow.

Karpouzian, hope you find some relief. I don't even have a surgery date yet and am looking for relief even being on prescription meds. It is totally annoying. If it is any help, I have seen several people on the site say it gets better after the surgery. Some folks say the acid reflux / heart burn comes for a few weeks and subsides. Other say it stays. It just depends on the individual. I have a friend of mine who is almost 2 years post-op and he has to take a rx med daily but it keeps his acid reflux under control.

It's normal to be nervous. This is a big undertaking. There is no undo after the surgery is completed. If they cath you, you'll be asleep and won't even know it. Some surgeons use them and some don't. You will be fine. It is part of that excited and you know you want to do it, but are nervous at the same time since it is something you have never experienced before. I know I will be nervous when my surgery nears and I know I want to do it. I would wonder about someone who didn't have the slightest bit of nervousness prior to surgery. Look at it as short time temporary obstacles (pain, cath, and any other fear) for long term goals of a slimmer and healthier person. Every surgery I have had I was nervous and some I have had multiple times. Completely normal reaction.

Vixey, An endo is a piece of cake. You can't eat or drink after midnight. You get an iv, they put a drug in it which makes you fall asleep and then you wake up after the examination. You are a little groggy and need to have someone drive you home. Nothing to worry about. Trust me. I have had at least 4 in my lifetime. Good luck. I imagine later Tuesday you will be posting that I was worried for nothing. Since you have never had one before it is nerves about the unknown.

For me I watched the doctor surgeries and enjoyed the narrated ones best. I found it helped to know what was going on. I agree when you watch an individual it is good to watch someone who has had this done for awhile to get a better point of view of what you are getting into. Just remember everyone is different and what they experience may or may not happen for you. Good luck with your surgery.

If you will be there for awhile, can you get some Protein drinks from costco, Sam's or Wal-Mart. Another option might be to order some online from Amazon and do quick shipping? Sorry to hear about your uncle and hope he does not suffer too much.

So the answer is "it depends" like most questions in life. Thank you all so much for your replies. Right now I just want to get this band out and get my sleeve surgery. I will know a lot more about my date after 8/19 when I meet with my surgeon to discuss test results and the next plan of action.

I have a question around heart burn but want to give you my background. I currently have a lap band in place. I have had it for 6 years and 1 month. For the past 3 years + I have had horrible heart burn. I had been on Protonix and then switched over to 60 mg Dexilant a year ago in July 2012. For the past few months the Dexilant is not relieving the symptoms. My doctor has taken out all the Fluid from my band and for the first few days it felt great. Now I have been waking up in the middle of the night due to heart burn. Finally the question part. If you had heart burn with your band: Has it gotten better since being sleeved Gotten worse No heart burn since being sleeved Can control it with antacids If you have had any heart burn symptoms could you please let me know when they occurred and how long they lasted? I have seen some people say the symptoms have lasted for a limited duration and then appear to be resolved. Thanks in advance for your replies. If this has been posted somewhere else before, sorry for reposting. Right now I am a little sleep deprived and didn't do a thorough search.

I am a TDB. I have already qualified based on my BMI and comorbidities I have. My ins. co. requires a 6 month med sup diet. When you have other complications it is possible to submit your claim early for review. Then it is up to the review board at the ins. co to make a determination of do they approve you now or make you go through the 6 month diet. My bp on my doctor's visit was 180/102 which really scared me. I also have United Health Care. What the requirements for insurance coverage are up to the type of coverage that your employer contracted for with the ins. co. I am hoping to have my surgery earlier, but if I don't I am hoping to have it before year end. I meet with m surgeon on 8/19 for my second visit to review some medical tests he has ordered. After that date I will have a much better idea of how he will proceed. My coordinator with Optum or Optima told me after the ins. co. receives the claim they have 15 days to make a decision. She said it normally does not take that long. With UHC for my employer if your BMI is at 40 or greater you do not need any comorbidity. I have already met all the other criteria for my ins. co. with the exception of the 6 month diet. The only other requirement they have is a psych eval and sign off from PCP. My doctor's office has add'l tests but those are dependent on the patient. For me since I am a revision patient from lap band to sleeve, he has already done an EGD. About two weeks before surgery he will order a chest x-ray, EKG and labs.