Ellisa

I start clear liquids tomorrow too. Surgery at 12:30 on Tuesday. Today hasn't been too bad. Been keeping busy. For some reason I've had this incredible urge to organize the last couple of weeks. Today got everything in order where I'll want it when I come home on Wednesday. (Have to stay overnight due to my 3 hr. ride home.) I'll be off work tomorrow so will be checking in and whining about my lack of food.

My psych eval was basically to ensure that I was competent enough to understand what the surgery entailed and had the ability mentally and emotionally to follow the aftercare plan. Kinda like is a suspect competent to stand trial. LOL

Michiganer, You are positively melting! I know that probably wasn't the best way to lose it, but it's gone just the same. Here in Ohio, Michigan University is our arch rival. Probably because it's the last game of the season and usually a heartbreaker for one team or the other. But the folks in Michigan just don't seem to have the same passion. Now Michigan fans who live in Ohio are very passionate. I'm not much of a pro-ball fan of any sport... well since John Elway retired. RonKat, My DH was banded 2 years ago. Started around 365 (he's 6'2") and down about 140, still losing. He's a truck driver who hauls flour into large bakeries, such as kellogg. It's rough smelling the Cookies and crackers! Chrissann, You can do it... just think you'll look so great at all the parties next year!!!

Michiganer, You are on your way! That job is just around the corner. I thought perhaps you were from that state up north. But how fortunate you are to be from Florida. So join me in a huge GO BUCKS. Ha did I out you? Are you really from that state up north? The Wolverines are worthy opponents. How much have you lost so far?

Brez, Congratulations! You'll need the time to prepare. Great in 2008! Missy, be sure to let us know as soon as you can how it went.

Brad, Well, you are the least expensive for self pay of any place I'm familiar with in the region. Thanks for the information. What do you charge for fills for patients who don't have surgery with you? I know what you mean with regard to insurance not paying adequately. ButI can't self pay to protest that my insurance is paying too little. My insurance doesn't cover any related care following surgery, including fills. Which seems stupid because after they've paid the big bucks for the surgery if a patient can't afford to have the fills and doesn't have improved health the insurance company will be paying even more to continue to cover the care for diabetes, high blood pressure etc. I don't know the answers to the insurance problem. Employers search for the lowest cost insurance and in order to provide low premiums insurance companies cut deals with health care providers. If the insurance were expensive enough to pay what healthcare providers charge, employers wouldn't pay for the insurance or the cost to employees would be out of reach for many families. On a whole other subject, malpractice insurance seems to be a huge cost to providers. If only some people didn't see medical mistakes as the lottery perhaps insurance reimbursements would become more affordable. Thanks for answering my questions. Most of the people I know who are considering it have insurance. But we still have to pay a percentage of the total cost. In my case for in network providers, it's 10% up to $750, then it's 100%. Out of network it's 30%, or roughtly $4800 (which is about what we had to pay Barix 2 years ago because they were out of network when my husband had his surgery). And I considered going there but their policy now is that the entire amount has to be paid up front and then the patient gets the insurance check. When he went, after insurance paid they billed us for the remaining balance. I can say that it was a wonderful facility since their entire practice is related to bariatric surgery. A draw back is in case of emergency, they have to send you to a nearby hospital, which wastes time. And I agree that these message boards are great places to get information. So thanks for adding yours. I'm have no doubt that there will be people in your region who are self pay will be interested.

Oh I hope you hear something soon! The waiting is the worst part of the process.

Hope your approval comes in record time! Some people get them very quickly.

Team December... that has a ring. Shall we challenge other months in a biggest loser contest when we're all bandits? LOL

Brad, You gave a lot of (very good) advertising for your practice, but you didn't answer my questions at all. Which insurance companies ARE you in network for? From your answer above I would think none. I didn't ask if you were the cheapest, I asked what it costs. A person can't take out a medical loan and say "I need enough money to not pay for the cheapest surgery." Barix and Dr. Curry's office were able to give me total prices including the hospital stay. There were no hidden costs. (My husband went to Barix two years ago, they aren't in network for my insurance.) As for RNY and bypass, I agree they aren't the best option for me, but for some people the band might not be an option (allergies?). Those types of surgery are touted as providing more immediate results for diabetics. Hope I don't sound sarcastic, I'm not intending to be. Chalk it up to my yummy presurgery liquid diet.

By all means do not take any OTC drugs or herbal remedies without your surgeons knowledge. I was going to start taking Glucosemine again for my knees. The nurse said not to, that if I had been taking it, they would have told me to stop at least a week before surgery. "Natural" doesn't always mean safe for all situations. Poison ivy is "natural."

Sounds to me like you did too good a job convincing your family that this procedure is nothing to worry about. LOL I think my the time I got done talking to my MIL she thinks it's about like getting a tooth filled. DH had it done 2 years ago, but she keeps worrying that it will be like SIL's open RNY. How do we get them to that balance? Either they are worried to death or think it's nothing at all. And the ones who are worried think we aren't taking it seriously enough and the others think we are whimps to have concerns. Hoo boy.

And the price is certainly better than my Magic Bullet.

I'm on the 18th at 12:30 p.m. I'm not nervous. Just so ready to get done with this liquid diet. At first it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but now I'm really ready for something.... pureed. Yum, I can have that the day after my surgery. I took the day off yesterday and got a manicure and pedicure! I was feeling sorry for myself. Oh poor me, can't eat out (I love to eat out) can't buy new clothes (what's the point right now?) It worked. I think maybe I should take off every other day to do that. :clap2: The good news is, I lost 5 lbs. right before starting liquids by doing a few days on Atkins Induction. And got up this a.m. and I'm down another 5 lbs. Woo hoo!

Oops, I meant to address that to Heather. pizzicato I don't have a clue about your question. :embarassed:

pizzicato, Usually, (not always) employers will keep the same level of coverage when switching. Your husband should make the HR people aware of your concerns so they can be working with the insurance company before the switch. When my employer switched, 18 months ago, the kept everything pretty much the same but there were some things that were to be phased out after a year. It was mostly concerning covered prescription drugs.

Dr. Watson, Which insurance companies are you in-network with? What are your prices for self pays? How much are your program fees? I have fat friends and family too. I went to your web site, but it wasn't specific. Does your practice also offer RNY or bypass? Is Cincinnati your only facility in Ohio? Which hospital(s) do you use?

I live in southeast Ohio. Thanks, I appreciate the offer. It would be nice to not have such a distance to travel. But my date is set for next week. I have Anthem insurance, and it's not in-network everywhere. So perhaps next year when I have to start paying for my fills I might look a little closer to home. (Anthem doesn't cover them.) I'm not at all nervous about the procedure. I really feel very confortable with Dr. Curry. I could go to Columbus which is 45 minutes for me, but I choose to go 3 hours away after doing research. I like that Dr. Curry is certified to train other doctors. Again, thanks for checking though because when it comes time for fills, I'll be looking at price and gas a lot closer.

Dr. Curry also offers the Realize band. (That's the one I'll be getting.) His wife is also banded and I think nearly everyone in his office is. Cincinnati is fortunate to have so many choices. In my region, there just aren't any I trust.

Tweedy, Who are you asking?

Congrats Chrisann! How exciting for you to have your date moved up so quickly. Welcome to the Merry Losers.

Riot, If your husband is willing to go to the consult he will be convinced. My DH was banded 2 years ago. I will be on the 18th of this month. As for food issues, my DH eats just about everything. But he's aware that since he's eating less he has to eat better. So he eats good first. Protien, veggies, and fruit. He still has small amounts of "junk" food. I said the other day, I guess I'll never have another big mac (not that that was ever a favorite food). He said, why not? You'll only be able to eat a few bites and then you'll wonder why you wanted it.

Congrats Cremy! I'm also from SE ohio. I'm going to be banded by Dr. Curry on the 18th. I've been extremely impressed by him and his staff. The communication and customer service are excellent. That's very important to me.

Wasa, I didn't take your posting as anything but what it was intended, a personal experience that happened. I do however look at posts regarding issues with the band because I really don't think I will be as fortunate as my DH. I ask him about PBing, sliming, and other things that some experience. Two years out and not once has he had those problems. Only one time has he brought something back up and that was when he was first eating the full diet. It was dry meat, maybe not chewed well enough. But he has never had stomach issues pre-op either. I on the other hand have a sensitve stomach to begin with. So I'm trying to get an idea of what to watch out for.