Luv2scuba

Band Groupie, Sounds like your making progress! I'm sure Thursday will get a lot of your questions answered. I think that getting on meds will help your case with the insurance. I've read where a lot of people find out they have sleep apnea when they start this process. I'm really looking forward to going next week for my appt with the surgeon to see just how and when things will happen too! Pat

Congratulations Margaret! I'm so happy that you got approved! That is so great! Keep us informed on you progress, please!

Hi dmr and shassy! There are a few of us around from this part of the state. I chose the band over bypass because of the adjustability. I like the fact that i will always be able to get a fill and have restriction. I like that is removable in case i need to have it removed or even if i need to only have the Fluid removed for some reason. I like the fact that my insides are not permanently altered. And i like the fact that so many have been successful with the band. I know too many people who have had bypass and gained back part if not all of their weight back. My sister had bypass and had so many ill side effects and has gained almost all her weight back and now has to diet to lose again. I like the idea of slower weight loss as i think it is healthier than losing so fast like bypasser's do. Those are the main reasons. shassy, I grew up in Smethport so i know Bradford well. Good luck on the 8th! Are you nervous? Does the idea of traveling so far for fills bother you? I really wish there was some place closer! I'm waiting for the plumber to come and fix my leaky sink. TTyl soon!

Hi dmr, I live near DuBois so i'm not too far away. I'm not banded yet have my consult next week. Can't wait to actually get this journey moving forward. What Dr. and facility are you using? I've decided to go to Erie, Hamot hospital and Dr. Ali. I wish there was somewhere closer! Good luck! Pat

Band Groupie, I decided to go to Erie and I'm using Hamot and Dr. Ali. Yes, they actually told me (and I have it in writing) 2 co-morbitities if you are between 35 and 40. My PCP is very supportive, he knows how hard i've struggled. I did a five year diet history for him to put in my chart (his records). I have a definate family history for diabetes and stroke, so as i look at it, i'm playing with fire if i don't do something. By the way, incontinence can be used, or so i've heard. My BCBS requires a supervised diet for 6 months, can be Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers. And the 6 months don't have to be consecutive, 2 3-month consecutive diets will work. I did weight watchters in 2007. I sent my dates to them and they said they would qualify as long as i had my surgery before Jan 24, 2009 which is when i had my first weigh in with WW. I'm not sure that my surgery will before that as i've had to wait for 4 months to see the surgeon. So while i was waiting i started a medically supervised diet, just in case. I don't need it be supervised by a dietician. My PCP talked about the bandster diet that i would be following after and so we decided that South beach would be the best way to prepare for those changes. So that is what i'm following. I'm following it, but eating larger portions so i don't fall below 40 before the 20th. I haven't seen a dietician yet and wont until i see the one the surgeon uses. I've heard that it is the the weight when you see the surgeon that counts for your BMI. Good luck with your PCP. Drink lots if you can, keep your keys, cell, loose change in your pockets and wear heavy clothes. It's funny how different our plans are for the same co and plan. I guess the different states make the difference. I question a lot of stuff in email thru HCBO.com. Can you access that? I have kept and printed all the correspondence with them, just in case. Let me know how you make out on Monday! Pat

Hi, I have a BCBS PPO, mine is a national account. My requirements were BMI of at least 40, 35 with 2 comorbidities; 6 month supervised diet (WW, Jenny Craig count), a psych eval and nutritional eval. I live in PA too, north of you by the sounds of it. I'm facing the same problem. I have no comorbitities and my BMI is hovering between 40 and 40.5. I'm trying to exercise and eat healthy. Doing my supervised now, losing a lb a month. I see the surgeon on the 20th and hoping that then i can really start losing. This may sound terrible but I drink lots of Water before my appt to weigh in, to keep my weight up there and i make my appts for late afternoon. Self pay is not an option for me right now, so i'm doing everything i can to stay above that 40 BMI mark, without gaining back a lot of weight. It's taken me over 2 years to lose what i have and i'm not willing to go back there. I've read on here that people will complain of joint pain, etc. to get that 2nd Co-morbidity. I'd talk to your pcp and see what he says about the Hypertension and see if he can come up with another one for you. Good luck and keep posting, so we know how you make out!

Good luck and let us know how you make out!

Shassy, how's it going? have you met with a surgeon yet? What was the deciding factor for you? Have you gone to a support group meeting at the Bradford hosp.? Nanband35, Hi, I've decided to use Hamot and Dr. Alli. Have you gone to one of their support group meetings? They are very helpful. I went to a general one and then a lapband one. I found the lapband one much more helpful. But both had great info. As a matter of fact I'll be at the lapband one on the 12th. My daughter and I are meeting with the surgeon, Dr. Alli, on the 20th at Hamot in Erie. We've both started out medically supervised diets, so i'm hoping things move quickly after that. :tongue: Nice to know there are some others from our great state on this journey. Pat

Thanks for the offer Sharmom! Hugs, Pat

Hi all! Sorry for being gone again. Another hurricane and then vacation. Just getting back into the swing of things. Pam - sounds like you are doing great! How was the fill? Feeling less hungry? How was homecoming? Hurricanes are pretty scary! I can only imagine the stress of having a loved in harms way during one. Cindy - great attitude! Hope I can remember that this is a lifelong learning process. Judy - Great to hear from you. How is it going? How is going with you and your daughter having it done together. My daughter and I are doing it that way too. I'd be interested to hear how it's working. As for me, I go to see my pcp for my second weigh-in, while waiting for my appt with the surgeon. My daughter and i have an appt. on 11/20 to see him. So i'm trying to eat a bandster lifestyle, much larger portions right now. I'm walking 6 days a week for 30 minutes. Tracking everything i eat and drink on "the daily plate". And waiting! Gotta run, have a meeting at the Armory this morning. Have a great day! Pat

Pam, I'm really sorry i haven't been on here for a while, these hurricanes are just making life miserable! How are you doing? What stage are you in? How long were you off work? I think that is horrible that they charge that much for a fill, but as they are necessary, what can you do? Lifes' ups and downs are always with us, huh? If you need to share, I'm here (hopefully more now!) I've not been doing much of anything, trying to start each day with a walk and keep my calories under control. I've missed being able to check in here daily! Pat

Cindy, Thanks, my job definately has it's ups and downs, i'm civilian. Things have been crazy with the hurricanes this past week and looks like we are in for another crazy week. Congrats on your weight loss! Sounds like you are doing great! Thanks for your offer. I'll be in touch. Pam, So glad you are doing well! Glad to hear that you are happy with your surgery results! I was thinking about you and wondering how you were doing. Can't wait to hear more! Roxyrip, Thanks for the well wishes. Sounds like you are doing very well too. I'd love to hear about the differences from you. As i said, the hurricanes have kept me busy and no time to check the boards. I have managed not to get deployed yet, we'll see what happens on the east coast this weekend! I saw my PCP to start my supervised diet yesterday. He was very supportive and completely understands the weight loss issues as he is quite overweight himself. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! Pat

Hi, Thanks so much for sharing! Your weight loss is amazing. Your wife's too! You, both, are an inspiration. That is so cool that you are off all your meds. I've read that the learning what your band will or will not accept is challenging but worth it as you said. I've been thinking about doing the same thing at work, we have a park about a block away and i've been thinking about going there at lunch. I'm sure it will help with my stress as well as weight loss. I really can't wait to go shopping and buy regular clothes! I went with my daughter to her first PCP visit this week and he was supportive, altho he admittedly doesn't know much about banding. He tried to tell us that by-pass would maybe be better but neither of us want that! I have my visit next week, so we are on our way. Thanks again for sharing! Pat

Pam, Hope all is well! Thinking about you today! Pat

Not banded yet but i had the same concerns as i'm a dive master. The band is not suppose to be affected at all by diving. I think there are some posts in the exercise section or if you do a search for scuba diving you'll find some of info. Good luck! Pat

Pam, You are in my thoughts and prayers today and tomorrow! I hope everything goes well and you have a speedy recovery! Hugs, Pat

Congratulations on having a date! My surgeon requires an overnight stay also and since i have to travel almost 3 hours to get to my surgeon, i'm kind of glad. What makes you feel like can't do it?

Hi, I'm a widow too. I'm not banded yet, probably will be after the first of the year. I see my PCP in about 10 days and start my 3 month supervised diet. I have an orientatiom/appt with the surgeon 11/20. Hope it won't be too long after that, that i get banded. Where are you in the process? Do you have a date? Pat

Congratulations! Let us know how you make out! Pat

Pam, Less than a week away! How are you doing? Pat

Hi Mike, thanks for answering. I'm glad you are both doing well. If I may ask, how much have you lost? How much has your wife lost? What has been the hardest change for you to make? Do you do those new things together? Or are your conditioning levels different so you really can't? I'm looking for things we can do together, that will keep us moving at least on the weekends. Hope you have a great day. Pat

Hi Kathleen, Congratulations on your band! I'm glad things went well for you! Looking forward to hearing about your journey and getting to know you. Pat

Congratulations to you and your wife on being banded! I can't wait! Thanks for your offer to help us out! My daugher and i are hoping to be banded like you and your wife. Ours will most likely be a couple of months apart tho. We live together and will be each other's main supports. Were there any pitfalls with being banded closely like that? I know we will have to be careful not to compared the others weight loss to our own. I'm only seeing positives. Pat

Good morning, It's a cool morning here in NW Pa. in the mid 40's! It's going to be in the high 70's today and sunny. Yesterday was a hectic day for me, as i finished up a big report that was due by Friday and got it submitted. I was worried about presenting it to my boss and asked to meet with her yesterday morning, thinking that i would have today to make changes she would want and still submit by Friday. I gave her a copy and she asked if we met the same criteria as last year. I told her yes we had. She asked what we were deficient in. I explained that our mutual aid agreements could be more specific in outling what is expected of both parties. She said to make that a goal for this year and to go ahead and submit it. I wasn't even with her for 5 minutes! I was surprised that she didn't even look at the report. Now on to my next project of writing a grant to help support the military families in our area. There is no support for the National Guard families as they are not close to a base. So we are trying to set up on-line support groups (much like this) that will allow video conferencing too. I imagine I'll be buried in research today and tomorrow. A mock trial team - that would be cool! I remember how excited my kids were when they got to attend something like that. Fills have me a bit worried. I'm not sure if they are covered in insurance or not yet. I have another list of questions to get answered and that is one of them. I'd hate to have to drive the 3 hours and have to pay 400 but I guess in the long run, it would be worth it! Sometimes the logisics of this scare me! I haven't told very many people that i'm considering it. My daughter knows of course cause she is also contemplating it. I told my best friend cause it's going to impact her life as well. As we go out to eat a lot and it's going to have to change for a while anyway. She was very supportive as she has a nephew who has had the surgery and has lost a great amount of weight, off his diabetes and high blood pressure meds now. I'd like her to attend some support group meetings with me, as I'm trying to educate her on the post-op diet and stuff but it doesn't seem to be sinking in. I've got a few months to keep at her tho. I've also told our summer intern at work. We talk alot about dieting and she thinks i'm so good with my diet now. So i told her i'm considering it and she told me she was too. I haven't shared with her how far i've gone and when we talk about it, i keep it general. I've decided that i'm not going to tell anyone else unless i have too. I don't want the negative feedback, people telling me i don't need it, or all the horror stories they know about it. I also don't want people watching everything i put in my mouth and asking "can you eat that?" Or asking why i haven't lost 100 lbs in 6 weeks. I think it's a very personal decision. The people at work know that i'm eating healthy now so i hope that that will continue after surgery. I eat at my desk so i don't think anyone will notice the liquid diet. And I'm hoping that i can have my surgery done on a thursday or friday and that i can go back to work the following monday or tuesday, so i'm just taking a long weekend. As far as my family goes, i'm not telling them. I have a sister who has had by-pass. She has had to have multiple follow up surgeries for complications. She originally lost over 100 lbs and regained 60 of it. She is battling depression and she can't sleep now. Plus her bariatric dr. is telling her to lose the 60 lbs. She has no idea how to do it. His suggestion cut the carbs. I'm making some other changes too...letting my hair grow out, have been getting my nails done and dressing differently. People say they don't recognize me now...:tongue:. Just wait until i've lost 100 lbs! My job is ever changing. I do all aspects of disaster planning for 2 counties for our organization. I write the plans, help people prepare, assist during disasters and work on mitigation afterwards. I also have the responsibility of assisting military families with emergency communications and notifications. We are looking to expand our involvement with them as DoD is granting a huge amount of money for community involvement at least under the current President, who knows what will happen next. I can also be deployed to assist others anywhere in the country in times of major disasters. Yes i agree with you, the best written plan doesn't do any good unless everyone know what it says (has their own copy) and it is practised. I help our schools practise and drill. The kids are much better prepared than the adults.... Wow, i guess i've rambled quite a bit! :thumbup: Hope you have a great day! Pat PS...like the pic, love being able to put a face with the name.

Morning Pam, I did a quick ckeck in a BMI calculator and it puts me at 42.05 and you at 39.5., those 2 inches really change things. I was sort of hoping that they measure me a little shorter 5'3" would give me another 10 lbs breathing room....:cool2: I think you are very brave going to mexico! I don't know if i could do that. I know what you mean about the insurance, i had been fighting with mine to pay for a dietician or nutritionist to help me lose weight. No way would they, but they will pay for bariatric surgery, i will have a co-pay of $150. But anyway, both my parents have been diagnosed with diabetes, my dad, a younger brother have heart problems. Almost all my dad's sisters have died of strokes when they were not much older than myself. So i'm scared now that i've hit that 50 + mark.:thumbup: Why insurances don't pay for some preventative measures is beyond me!:thumbup: I'm glad you have your husbands support! And that he is going with you. He will have his skinny wife back! :sneaky: Two weeks of a clear liquids would be trying. Do you have a plan? Have you tried any of those Protein bullets? We have been trying different Protein drinks and have found the slim fast low carb stuff to be the best tasting and easily accessible. Not only do we not have many drs in this area, we are food store challenged as well. It's an hour drive to the "city" to find any nutrition stores or any large chains. So i'm limited to wallmart and a small bi-lo. We have to do drink 6 carnation instant Breakfast packets a day for 1 week before surgery. After surgery, clear liquids for 48 hours, then full liquids for 2 -3 weeks, the mushies for 2 weeks, then soft foods for 2 weeks, then regular food. They say they do a fill 4 weeks out. Will you go to Mexico for your fills? I admire you teaching! That is cool that you will be Principal or Superintendent next year! Didntn see a photo, but then i'm still getting used to this site. I tried to attach one for you. This was taken a few months ago, I needed to submit a photo for work, and had to take in the restroom.... but that's me! Have a great day! Pat