MamaJava

All I know is I saw the words "salad and cheeseburgers" and I about flipped my lid. LOL I could not even imagine eating those kinds of foods for fear of what it could do to my healing stomach right now. Not to mention the gastritis that is bound to happen...and that stuff can be pretty painful. Gotta say it's shocking, but to each their own.

Hiya! I'm wondering the same thing...and I was banded on the same day as you. My deal is that I'm a wine connoisseur, so I attend tastings and wine parties all the time. I will call my doc if nobody knows the answer around here.

Ack! The words "Crystal Light" make me shudder. I can't stand that stuff, so I doubt it would make any drink taste better to me. LOL It has the worst aftertaste on the face of this green earth. I'm surprised it's so popular. :omg:

Actually, LauraD, I think most of us can clearly see that she was not, in fact, educated by her doctor at all. I can see that. Otherwise, she would know that her statements in her original post are only half-truths and half-facts. She claims to know what this journey is like for all of us, and that's what all the opposing posts have been trying to explain to her. I don't see any blanket statements being laid upon her. I'm not sure which statements have done that at all. I also think more emotion is being read into these responses than what is really there. I see the arguments as being really an attempt to educate someone...not as "whippings" as you describe. I suppose it's all in how one may focus on trying to interperate the emotion of a post rather than the words.

I should also add that none of my additional physical issues mattered at all to my insurance. They didn't care that I have obesity-induced joint deterioration (making it nearly impossible to exercise), hip displacements, severe edema or any of my other issues. They didn't care that I had been a Weight Watcher member over 11 times. They completely ignored my doc's 3-page custom-written letter pleading my case. They set all that paperwork aside and the first time I was denied they were like "this is all ya got?" LOL it was right at that time that my sleep center called and said you need a CPAP like NOW...and I was almost immediately approved after BCBS got that documentation.

I agree that it totally depends on your individual plan, terms, etc. I also have BCBS PPO (Gold). I HAD to have (no if's, and's or but's) 1 or more of the following: A. sleep Apnea B. (severe) Diabetes C. Heart issues PLUS a BMI over 40 PLUS have more than 100 pounds to lose. If I would not have had sleep apnea, I would not have been banded 4 days ago. So not all BCBS PPO's are the same.

Just an FYI cuz your question caught my eye...the only objective of the psyche evals are to ensure that you are mentally prepared to follow doctor's orders and to follow your post-surgical plan. They are to check to make sure you are ready. They are not meant to help with food addictions by any means.

I have to disagree (rather heavily) as to what the OP has stated also. It is absolutely NOT true that "once an overeater, always an overeater." Many, many folks in this world can tackle an addiction through various means and it doesn't effect them the same way it would effect somebody else (or should those be 'affect'? I always forget). To say we will all still be over-eaters is a completely rude blanket statement to make. Also, you must realize some people overcome addictions and never become addicted to anything else ever again. Some do become addict-shifters and move on to something else. In those cases, they will need help to conquer those addictions somewhere along the line as well. So you are having trouble in that aspect means you could have posted as "hey ya'll, here's my issue...who else has this going on?". Instead you chose to state something as though your problem is everybody's problem. I think that can touch nerves if you're not careful to word things much, much differently in the future.

Thanks! Also, I do have a 5-month old baby boy so I'm also bending and lifting more than I should. I'm being really careful, though. :eek:

I can't stand the Any-Whey, so-called "virtually tasteless" protein powder anymore. I'm also struggling with eating enough items each day to even put the powder in it! So, I really want a protein shake that will pack a big punch and get most (if not all) of my protein in in 1 shake. Does anybody know how many grams of protein are in GNC protein shakes, and are they good ? I will go buy a couple tonight, but some quick suggestions will help me out a lot.

I'm surprised to read how simple most of your seminars were! Ours went like this: 1 hour seminar in a room of about 15-20 people, and each one was allowed to bring 1 guest if they wanted. The performing surgeon spoke directly to our group for the full hour, covering everything you'd ever wanna know about the surgery. He drew on a dry erase board, answered questions and gave complete info on what was required of all patients pre-sugery, post-surgery and for the rest of their lives. He also explained all dietary info, explained what insurance companies are usually looking for, cost of surgery if you wanted to pay out of pocket...you'd be surprised at how much information you NEED. It's not just time fillers. This information is important. THEN, we each got to meet with the Doc one-on-one. We were weighed, measured, gave brief medical history, handed in all medical documentation we felt may help our case and to help Doc get to know our bodies better. In that meeting, he took his time (about 20 minutes per patient), and then let each of us know (in private of course) what we still needed to do for approval. OR, if he felt our insurance would approve us already, then he simply signed off on our charts and submitted to insurance that day. Some people were approved within 48 hours. I still needed a Psychological Evaluation, I still needed an EKG, and I still needed a sleep Study...so Doc gave me the info and referrals for all that stuff. I got it all done within 2 weeks and came back for a private follow up visit. I was approved 10 weeks later (after a couple documentation hiccups and my insurance is a big booger anyway). So...some seminars are very, very detailed and accomplish way more than you can imagine. Others are simply the information and you don't meet with a Doc I guess, but at my facility they try to get almost everything done ASAP since you're already there anyway. My facility and Doc were amazing. :clap2:

Does anybody have any idea how long it takes for the throat soreness to go away? They said it's from my tube during surgery and I guess I have some rawness or swelling from that. It still hurts quite a bit and my mouth is SO DRY - no amount of liquids is helping that situation at all. Any support, ideas or suggestions to can send my way? :help:

Hi all! Wanna introduce myself as a fellow Michigander. I'm from Tecumseh (Ann Arbor area). Had my band done at Forest Health in Ypsi by Dr. Schram. 4 days out and I'm feeling really great. If anybody wants to talk, I'm your gal...

I had my original consultation with Dr. Kam (while he was in Ypsi). However, since I chose the lap-band, I ended up changing over to Dr. Schram. Dr. Schram has more experience and specializes in the band. Dr. Kam's biggest success and specialty is the bypass. I like them both. Both are wonderful physicians and both are very knowledgeable in their craft. However, since I had the band, Dr. Kam wasn't gonna be my choice. ONe of my close friends is a nurse who works side by side with both and Dr. Schram simply has a higher (nearly flawless) success rate with the band since he teaches it around the world.

I actually had this on days 2 & 3 post-op, believe it or not. It was because I had a really bad head cold (caught that in the hospital during my banding). So, when I came home, I had a ton of mucus that was just not knowing where to go. I believe it was getting trapped in my upper stomach and was too thick and stringy to get through the opening and empty into the lower stomach. So, about 4 or 5 different occasions, I would begin to sweat, I would begin to "slime" and salivate to the point where I knew I was gonna vomit. I would, but it was more of very loud burping and just a little bit of substance actually came up. I called my doc...he said I was having serious PB's due to the mucus. BLECH. I didn't like it, but it wasn't the worst thing on earth either...although it did hurt my port site from the contractions - I vomit and gag very violently. I always have.

Actually I'm not as much worried about the act of burping & hiccupping, or even how much...that doesn't bother me. It's the pain that I'm referring too. I've never had pain when I burped or hiccupped and now I do. It's not a good feeling. I'm wondering if *that* goes away?

OR...am I stuck feeling this pain every time I burp and hiccup for the rest of my life? I realize I'm only 4 days out from when I was banded. However, I'm worried that this pain is permanent. Yikes... Each time I feel a belch coming on (lots of those post-op as many of you know), the pressure in my chest builds up really fast, the pressure is excruciating for about 3 seconds until I release the air, and then it's normal again. Same thing with hiccups. Lots of chest pressure (ends up being painful) until I feel like I'm gonna burst, then it's gone when the hiccups subside. So is this simply related to the soreness I have from the surgery in general, or is it permanent pain that will come every time I belch or hiccup for the rest of eternity? I have a 5-month old baby & 10 y.o daughter so I haven't taken pain meds since day #2 post-op...that way I can drive when needed without being all doped up with kids in tow.

I am only 4 days out from when I got banded, but my facility warned me of issues like these before I got my band. Therefore, I'll be joining Weight Watchers (again for the 100th time in my life I swear) to ensure my success. I love WW, and this time I will have success...I can feel it. I don't think I could do this without knowing beforehand that it was gonna be hard - this way I feel more prepared.

The gas pains were the absolute worst part for me. I had them terribly immediately post-op. They kept me overnight cuz my insurance made them...and I'm so glad about that. The chest pain was crushing. They send me for x-ray thinking maybe something was wrong with my band, but they found a gas bubble in my lower stomach the size of a football! Well...no wonder I was miserable. Sleep and lots of meds the nurse gave me to move my bowels is the only thing that helped. Today I am 3 days post-op and I'm feeling really good. I get the bad chest pains right before I'm about to burp or hiccup, but it goes away immediately upon doing one or the other. Eating, walking and going to the bathroom a lot seem to help. I'm thoroughly addicted to my Gas-X chewables. They are my best friends right now.

No diet or weight loss was required before my surgery. However, the day before was all clear liquids, plus I had to take 2 Dulcolax tabs at 10:00am the day before surgery. It worked. I expelled the remainder of that day (ewww) so I'm sure I was very clean and ready for surgery. LOL

My doc requires 2 weeks of full liquids (cream soups, jello, pudding, etc.), then 2 weeks of puree'd foods (baby food consistency), then 1-2 weeks of soft foods (basically anything you can eat if you didn't have any teeth). However, the nutritionist said very clearly that if 2 weeks of puree's is too difficult, then you can shorten that to just 1 week of purees followed by 1-2 weeks of soft. She said not to determine anything until it comes right down to the time, though.

I started the New Year off right by getting banded (with a new Realize band) on January 4th. I had the procedure done at Forest Health in Ypsilanti, MI. My doc was Dr. Jon Schram. Top-rated dude in the nation. He was absolutely wonderful. I gotta say, the gas pains in my chest were the worst issue I had. It was very, very painful immediately post-op, and again the following day. They took x-ray to see what was up and my stomach was filled with a gas bubble the size of a football! LOL Eventually that went away. Now I only get occasional pain when I burp or hiccup - feels like my chest is gonna burst only briefly, and then it's relieved the moment the gas is passed. Oh what fun! Otherwise, I'm thrilled to be banded and on my way to glory. I need to make a signature with a weight loss ticker and such...trying to figure out how to do that in this website. Any help you might wanna offer me? ~Krista

Hi all! This is my very first post ever! I was banded on January 4th and I can't wait to go through this with all of you. I'm home and healing and excited about what is to come in the future. So...I added myself to the most recent list. UPDATED LIST Dec 31- Chrisann (honorary member of the Jan 08 bandsters) Jan 1- HAPPY NEW YEARS! Starting the year off right! Jan 2- phowell, Megmarie21, Gingerbug(Victoria), jengland, racetrackweary, rainbowme2(Bunny), RT, jojokitty Jan 3-WOWOX7, Woodsy,momto3, Mommamare, nancy52,AnneElliot, ovahkummer Jan 4- KUgirl, steviegene, SuzanneG, Songinmysoul, sleclerc (shirley), WendyRae, MamaJava Jan 5- texasbandster Jan 6 Jan 7- CallmeJim, comepickmeup, NukeChik, mamato3, kintime, Shell, destined2befree, babedoe4 Jan 8- Fat&thrifty(and husband Joe), itz me, faa31, crackedpepper, flipbarnett, Joanna240, rustymarie, gingydilly Jan 9– Redtulips3, FLMan, TachaBaby505, Lillyanne_M Jan 10- luvsrocks, Hilary, Jen25bl, jtag10_4, Char1007, Pizzaman citygirl4616 Jan 11- brez1015, Tmusicmaker123, Poopsie, Ready2JustDoIt, B-Man, ganigirl6 Jan 12- jen6740 Jan 13 Jan 14- CoreynVA, acalpn, srbanker(Suzanne), grayl, cnukaya, Jessthat, Deedle, thinner-or-bust, gilliebean, greeniiii, mitch, WestCoastFatGuy, SMR100 Jan 15- Travelology, Dianegoe, poodlecamper, LKM, greeneyez Jan 16- Kathy, Saleel, back2reality, Cherry_Blue, Dazzle, nadean, with his help, Laurinda; Pikedafoe Jan 17- SJK, Alfie, L.A., lwood, tweenwaters, Laurieloo, kcintx,mia31771 Jan 18- RuthE?, shanarene Jan 19 Jan 20 Jan 21- mo7293 (Maureen), graham, lee41 Jan 22- purplegoddess, DPJDMOM, bcgates Jan 23- min, Ang1982 (Angela) Tigger_Shorty (Rose), WhirlWinds Jan 24- holleyhobby,jst4kel,kimmycrs, Somogyi1, rakes4321, RomeGA3 Jan 25- Noni(Mary), htay73il (Hope), Thor, rakes4321(Amy) Jan 26- Louise (London) Jan 27 Jan 28- kawanabear(Kalonda), crystalcml, blg200200, justtjohn, PeachesPJ Jan 29- diane-south fla Jan 30- PortuguesePrincess(Stephanie),Amberwaves(Amber), Tamika(taismommy) Jan 31- SarahT1982, lkgrubb, sexymama