Wheetsin

This one is too easy.

My "second mother" growing up was from Australia and used to put that or Maramite on toast. I think I got used to it and liked it but now I don't remember.

Yeah that one was ironic to me. Here's an obese person who's not banded, telling us we need to do something to fix our problems. I like that ironic bit of sagery. Like you can "do something" about having a port that's hard to access. Perhaps the OP is a proponent of self-surgery?

Oh be careful with gum, if you go that route. One wrong swallow could land you in a world of trouble. I've done the fruit thing and the sauce thing, but more than anything I just go for a sip if I need it. (Would love to find a surgeon who could discuss the funnel theory with me and actually have it make some sense, because right now it's counterintuitive to my thoughts and -- physics, really).

Erosion is when the band erodes through the organ wall. It happens from the outside in, and I can't see for the life of me how drinking Water has anything to do with it. I think OP may have gotten some bad information or confused something with another. I personally have never seen a difference in the quanitity I eat when I drink or don't drink, but I can't drink much when I'm restricted or it's painville. And the funnel theory doesn't make logical sense to me. But that's just me. If I'm thirsty and can do it, I drink (sips only, too much sneaks up on you very quicly). However this was mostly in the first year - 18 months. Nowadays I find that I'm just not that thirsty during meals.

There are sometimes confusions between anesthesia, anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists. I'd definitely call and ask them why anesthesia is not covered. At least it's usually a reasonable amount compared to the hospital bill.

I had to fight to get the larger part of my anesthesia covered. Not because of a denial tho, in my case it was a billing fiasco. I have heard of people who have had certain parts of their procedures, including anesthesia, denied. It may be that the type of anesthesia goes beyond their definition of "reasonable and customary" (in which case you would pay the difference). It could also be that the anesthesiologist is not a networked provider. Because a facility is in noetwork doesn't mean all its employees are. Definitely follow-up with them for more information... find out EXACTLY what about it isn't covered.

I've never heard "drinking" and "erosion" in the same sentence before. I don't think any research has yet connected erosion rates with drinking Water during or after meals, either... and from where I sit that doesn't even make any sense. Most surgeons tell you NOT to eat within a certain amount of time before, during, or after meals because the theory is that the water "funnels" the food through the pouch, emptying it sooner and reducing the body's ability to register the "full" sensation from the food sitting in the pouch.

Hi Truckoholic. Remember that our bodies' abilit to store fat is not just a product of how much we eat, but also what we eat, our metabolism (given your age and profession, I'm guessing this one might hurt you), etc. There are two places I would recommend for getting started. The first one is to call your insurance company, see if they approve the procedure, and see what their requirements are. Once you know whether or not insurance coverage is possible, schedule an information seminar (more than one preferrably, so you can test the waters with different surgeons). This will give you base information on the band, the surgeon, practice, and most likely the preliminary paperwork you will need to fill out. But some practices won't get to the paperwork route until they know your carrier covers the procedure, or you're self-pay. Your preliminary info indicates that you qualify based on the generic requirements for carriers that cover: BMI 35+ with 2+ comorbidities or bmi 40+. From that generic baseline there are variations, and there are also carrier-specific requirements such as medically supervised weightloss attempts, physician referrals, medical histories, requisite testing such sleep studies and stress tests (will depend on your medical history). Best of luck. Men kick ass at this (and every other) type of weightloss effort.

A lot of ppl find that going after low-carb varieties of weak foods does nothing for them other than to perpetuate their cravings for weak foods. That's one reason a lot of ppl choose to avoid them. They're also very heavy on the artificial sweetners, which at least in the low-carb world are known stallers and even cause gastrointestinal distress in some people, esp. maltitol and sorbitol.

The pill worked for me while I could take it. I haven't been able to take it in 8 - 10 years probably. Most surgeons do recommend a minimum of one year, and several are now starting to go upwards of 2 - 3 years. The BCP works with a failure rate, just like any other BC. I will move this to a better forum for you since it's a question about BC rather than surgery.

It depends on your insurance. HMO v. PPO v. EPO v. etc. If you don't know whether referrals are required, call your insurance provider and ask.

Haha, I'll be the "Mom, is she fat or pregnant?" girl. Unless my baby's really damn high, like by my boobs, I'm not worried about my port.

Moved to RnR since that's really all OP was doing. Post away. Maybe we should request that our members only post the good things. Suerly that will give everyone an honest idea of what the depth of band experiences out there looks like.

A few thoughts. Maybe an aquarobics class. Most of the people in the class will be obese or geriatric, or a combination of the two, so who cares? :wink: My parents' neighborhood rents their pool out to bring extra money in to the Homeowner's Association -- $10 an hour. A reasonable rate for good exercise that's private. Any chance an endless pool is feasible? That would be a great investment, and they're deep enough to do some resistance work. I'd get one if we had the space. *sigh*

Many surgeons run their commercials on local channels. Allergan has a new commercial campaing too, replacing the previous "hunger lion" one. It may be getting more air time.

It took me like 6 - 8 months to get out of the 250s. I can't say for sure it was anything other than my behaviors, but I know that not much changed between then and when the weight started changing again. On Atkins I would sometimes stall for 6+ months, even though I remained in ketosis the entire time. ETA - those are scale reflections.

I was rear-ended late January. The other driver was 100% at fault. I finally got my car back at the beginning of the month, then they fixed something incorrectly and it had to go back in Friday. In the meantime, they tried to put me in a Ford Focus as a replacement. I drive an SUV. I'm a hair under 6 foot and DH is 6'5. Plus non-negotiable passengers. Fools. I was on medication therapy for the back/muscle issues but stopped due to pregnancy, so my Dr. prescribed physical therapy (which she was going to do anyway since she wasn't seeing as much progress as she wanted with just the relaxers/pain meds/etc.). That will start this week. Because of this accident, I'm out to the tune of about $8000 between missed work, medical bills (this one has a caveat, but for the sake of keeping it simple...), copays, etc. I just called to see about submitting my expenses and found out they pay in a single lump sum, so if I submit now, they will not cover physical therapy. And once they pay, they're allegedly "free and clear" of anything else that may come up. I'm not sure I buy this, nor am I sure they should be telling people who call. If my head falls off 3 weeks from now and 10 doctors can testify that it's because of this accident, I don't see how having processed payment for my bills removes their liability. I asked if they planned on paying the current interest rate on my $8000 since it would be accruing interest right now if I hadn't had to spend it, and she literally laughed at me. I really wasn't kidding. It makes me wonder -- if I was in a position where I didn't have the cash to spare, and had to use a credit card, would they pay the interest on the charges? When they told me, "Our goal is to keep you from experiencing a change in your standard of living" they didn't add, "...one year from now." That's soooo what's not happening. If my life is supposed to be as though the accident, where are teh gains I'm missing because my 8k is elsewhere? I've been no-fault in accidents before, and I know for a fact that things were paid as I went. I used the example with her, "So if I needed surgery and rehab, the surgery couldn't be booked for 4 months and then my rehab was 6 months, it would be 10 months before you even thought of paying anything, and I would have to foot those bils or at least pay copays, then my insurance company would have to go after you?" and she confirmed that was indeed the case. So, so, so messed up.

Hairloss is NOT a side-effect of the band, it's a side-effect of surgery, general body trauma, anesthesia, etc. It was as much a side-effect of having my gallbladder surgery in August as it was my band surgery 2 years ago. I've not heard of heartburn being a side-effect of the band under normal circumstances. I think most people find their heartburn subsides, but either way I don't have it so I don't know personally. Other side effects - there really aren't many. Change on behaviors, negative reinforcement when you do something stupid, weightloss, increased self-esteem....

It's suture. I had the same thing after an operation a few months ago. Quite a bit was left out, enough that it would snag my shirts. In my case it went away on its own, took about 2 months. If it bugs you, go to your surgeon's office and tell him to trim it, if you don't want to do it on your own. No reason to panic. There's nothing you could really pull loose unless you REALLY pulled, and then you'd know it.

Do a search. We have hundreds of MX and out-of-state bandsters who have discussed their travel tips, worries, suggestions, etc.

I started with a goal of 200lbs that's now closer to 210lbs. I started at 382 lbs and currently have about 45 lbs to goal. Even at my high the equipment wasn't an issue, I never had problems fitting or getting it to work properly. If you can't fit on the equipment, or aren't comfortable doing it in public, I would suggest a pool. I would also suggest exercising outside of a gym, e.g. walking trails, most highschools keep the track around their football fields open to the public, even just free weights for your around-the-house stuff. Any time you're sedintary is an opportunity to be active -- leg lifts during commercials, grips during book time, etc. It's not much, but you're going to have a really high BMR so any little bit helps that much more.

It depends on where the port is placed. Mine is right under my bra band, so unless I carry REALLY high, it's probably not going to look any different. A girlfriend's is on her side, and hers did not show.

I can't give you suggestions from the (very few) support groups I've attended because the topics weren't helpful. But from my butt: A clothing exchange. Myths about the body/weightloss/etc. A "bring your favorite band friendly food" recipe swap thing - kinda like the Protein tasting only better. Psychologist to focus on managing addiction (it that wasn't one of your topics already). A little Bandster 101 never hurt anyone, I've meet people 3 and 4 years out who are doing some really stupid things because they still don't know better. That's about it, I'm not feeling creative today.

I've never had it happen to me, but I know several people who have been through sifnificant illness/nausea since banding and all are fine. It's good that your surgeon is willing to check you out, many won't until you show symtoms of something being wrong. I've heard, through the grapevine kind of thing, that one of my surgeon's patients lost her band after a slip that was blamed on coughing. This is the only instance like that I've heard of, and I can't confirm it's true. Don't see it as a huge setback already, you don't even know if anything is wrong. Try to think positive and wait and see what the tests show. If you have slipped, it can often be fixed by a short period of unfill.