CollegeJoe

So you can't eat and drink at the same time when ur banded. Like if u have a bite of something u cant take even a small sip of water? jw...thx for the help!

CONGRATS ADD another to the Bandsters! yIpEEE!!!!

Hey it's CollegeJoe and just wanted to say im still here and havent disappeared...just busy with classes but wanted to say that i got an appointment at NorthWestern Medical Center ....i was born there lol.... May 17!!! So that day i like to call Judgment Day because we will find out about it and IF insurance covers it. I'm under my mother's insurance which is Aetna PPO. SO hopefully everything will go alright... AND the bad news is... well not for me really but that the Wish Center in Chicago was on fox news because it filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy!!!! i didnt believe it either! They were doing a segment of how they filed and some people may not be able to get their money back if they decided to late. So i will post here....and i always read what people are writing so ill ttyl!!!

Sorry, what's RNY? haha i hope my doctor (she) goes for it...she'll be like oh u dont need it just work out... i'd be like honey i'm at a 400 pound disadvantage ...please note i did take anti depressents at one point... so i can't see why i couldnt be banded...but it's good to know aetna may see this seriously enough to let me have surgery...

Oh Congratulations!!! Don't rush your self take it one step at a time ...literally :-P

I was bottle fed...i think i was too thirsty than what my mom could give me! BreasMilk The Only Way To Go!

i thought it was a short procedure ... doesn't gastric bypass a 5-7 hour procedure?

congrats and hope it helps u !

hello, thanks got to read this and OMFG! People take it easy everyone is overweight but some people need to hear comments and take it in. I have a bmi of 49! So booyah haha! In MY opinion, and MY opinion, it really has to deal with how old and tall u are cause if u are shorter and older i can understand but if u need to gain 60lbs for surgery or just need to lose 30 or 40 that can be done with diet and exercise over time. I am...get ready...am 402 lbs and 6'4" ...i would have a bmi of 34.2 if i was 280 which is still pretty high. I think people who over react to comments are looking to surgery for a quick fix in MY opinion. Dont get too damn touchy we are all here to hoping to have a "new" life. But if ur insurance doesn't cover it it's for a reason. If anyone wants to argue bring it on and get it off ur chest! But dont be spreading hate to these boards. U guys start it and i WILL FINISH IT!

imo u shouldnt have to get surgery unless ur close to 300lbs or over

hey, if anyone is out to talk to i know my mom and me would like to talk to those on the phone if they live in chicago...773 or 312 area code! I know that u feel a lot better losing a lot of weight but when ur still considered heavy it brings u down. My mom is going to check with the docs monday or tuesday and call to schedule the next seminar which is may 17...before u know it ill be banded! lol i love that word...

Hey, the name is Joe. I'm 6'4"1/2 (yes i'm VERY tall) and i weigh around 402lbs. I used to be 430 but im glad i was able to lose some weight but that was awhile though. Im currently looking to this surgery due to the fact that its harder for me to run at times cause of my feet and that the doctor said i may have developed asthma although my breathing has been fine. If there is anyone who has gone through the surgery that i can talk to PLEASE email me at joe_60618@yahoo.com or AIM AOL : AiAnimator i would really would like to hear from someone about it. Thanks!

OH dont get me wrong i DO have a bally's membership and would work out 3 days a week for 2 hours but then i injured myself and found out i have signs of asthma so i've been taking advair and feel a lot better though so it could be recovering from a cold. Tis the season. But i looked at other options like lipo...um no... then gastric was going to be my second choice but i researched it and didnt really like it enough to find it less riskful. Of course with any surgery there is risk but i heard this is around 20-30 min procedure so to me it doesnt sound so bad. I do not have the money so yes insurance is the only way for me but even though im younger u have to remember im over 400lbs. And some people were under 300 or even above it but its like im at a HUGE disadvantage because even if would lose 100lbs i would be considered morbidly obese ... im NOT looking for a quick fix ...that would be lipo...i want to live and eat healthier. I am confident insurances will be me applicable for surgery and in time im sure i will have it. That or even take out a loan if i have to. i mean i know im tall so i kinda look "normal" but the face remains 400lbs and for a teenager is bad. I'm going for this no matter what. I dont like eating food all that much and in fact i eat slowly. So i could care less about eating nothing but Jello and wheat for the rest of my life. My friend Walter who has a really bad stomach had nothing but chicken soup/sandwiches for a year and he still is on em. I mean i realize u cant eat all the junk food but when ur working out its not so bad cause u dont care for that food and actually i dont but when ur a college student with a few bucks i would go for mcdonalds $1 menu get a burger and parfait whereas paying $4+ for a sub sandwich. But if i use the surgery in conjunction with healthier eating and exercising i know i can accomplish a lot. Plus i got a LOT of weight to lose anyway so i know ill make sure i use it to the highest i can. But thank you for giving me a heads up.

hey yes its 10 :50pm central time. I got home about an hour ago. But i wanted to thank you for all the responses, i've read em all and learned from you guys thanks! If u have AOL AIM instant messenger im me at : AiAnimator we can chat online and what not. So right now my mom is trying to see if she can take a half day. How i knew was by watching maury and they showed it. There is actually northwestern medical center that's in downtown chicago where it takes place and there is the wish center thats near chicago. I mean come on it's chicago! lol . So im very excited to look into this. I hope everything will be ok...

Hi, yes i am willing to make drastic changes. It's really weird cause i always told my mom even before this that i really didnt like food that much and i wish that it would not have to be a part of my life cause there is other stuff i would like to be doing besides eating. My mother is going to see with the whole seminar cause she may be interested too. I say there are a lot of older people here that had it BUT me being younger u know how it was to die inside. btw i have a great funny personality so that kinda made up for it but i still felt left out. I mean i can save on food and clothing costs. Like if im eating at mcdonalds like a quarter pounder and fries i think to myself, i know this is good tasting, but i know its not healthy ... i wish i didnt have to eat so much. I really hope insurance covers this or even i can be some sort of "guinea pig" for some doc that is researching. I of course looked at lipo when i was younger and i was like meh, then gastric bypass surgery and that scared me although that seemed reasonable THEN i hear about this lap band and how its irrversible. With gastric ur stomach is permanently stapled and u can't change it but with lap band its like the same eating habits with less risk. I know that i can pb, nausea all that good stuff :-P. It's like it would also be able not have to worry about plane trips cause i havent been on a train in years and would be embarrassed if i was ever forced to pay for 2 seats. The real next plane trip im ever taking is in 2 years. When i turn 21 on august 15 in 2006 and it would be awesome. The other thing too is that i wouldnt be embarrassed to go to my 5 year school reunion. Just to let u know i'm not doing this strictly for other people but for myself. I mean i admit being the weight i am im able to do somethings other overweight kids can't but its like i recently injured my foot exercising and its bad cause it seems every few years i manage to break my feet. Anyway im still looking into this. THen my mother would always tell me about hanging skin and im like mom my skin already hangs cause im so tall my weight is a little proportional so it stretches it but it hangs anyway. I would have hanging skin than hanging fat if you know what i mean. And another thing is that im surprised how cheap it is cause it being anyway from 10,000-17,000 depending is a lot less than my guess of 35,000. So its like why not?! I think my mom's insurance should cover it because im getting it not only because im younger but a lot heavier than most overweight teens out there. So i thank you for being here and listening to what i have to say. I have school and i have to get ready and i wont be back till after 9pm so when i do look for me ill definitely post here when i get back

hey, im 19 years old! yeh im pretty heavy but also very tall. Being a guy its also hard cause im always getting called names but that was high school and now im in college but ugh want to have surgery to better my life. I can tell u the stories of how i wasnt able to go on carnival rides after waiting almost 2 hours for the hulk ride at orlando. Or breaking my friend's bed..( he was asking for it) or breaking a toilet seat here and there. Ive done lots of pill diets and i know that i would rather take a risk of surgery than doing pills. I am learning a LOT about the surgery and i REALIZE i have to make a drastic change. I die to be thinner so i can do sports , or learn to ride a bike or even do things that normal younger kids had that i didn't. I want to take the change and hope to go to one of the seminars next month or so.