KD7JUV

Hi Dan, Most happy that you found our announcement. Congrats on your March 3 surgery date, I am sure all will go well.:w00t: You might come to our February 11th support group meeting. I found it helpful to attend support group meetings before surgery to get the scoop on what to expect, how to get through the presurgery diet, etc. We had 12 at our last meeting and that number has been a pretty steady average. To get the directions to the church, go to penlapband.blogspot.com I look forward to meeting you, Chuck

Try the nurses at Northwest Fill Center in Arlington, they are great. I had my band surgery in Detroit at Harper Hospital in April. I live in Sequim, so flying back to Detroit for my fills was out. I began attending the meetings of various support groups in Western Washington a couple of months before my surgery. I met Kitty and Robin, the Northwest Fill ladies, before my surgery at a Port Orchard Support Group meeting. The Port Orchard Support Group meets at 6PM on the 3rd Wednesday every month at LeGarmache Catering. Kitty and Robin, who both have bands, have done all of my fills and I have had no problems. I have gone twice to Arlington for my fill and twice to Port Orchard. They come to the Port Orchard Support Group every month and do fills there from 3PM to 6PM before the meeting starts. No appointment is needed, just show up early enough to fill out their information form before your fill. The charge $175 at Port Orchard. Northwest Fill Management, Kitty and Robin, have their main office in Arlington and you can go there just about any day to have your fill done. But call first for an appointment because they may be somewhere else doing fills sometimes. Their location is easy to find, up I-5 to the Arlington Exit 208, east to the traffic circle, south out of the circle and an instant right into the parking lot of the pharmacy. Their "office" is inside the pharmacy at the back of the store. In Arlington, the first visit is $175 and subsequent visits for fills are $150 per visit. I have no intereast in Northwest Fill Management except as a very satisfied patient. You can find them and all the details on line at Northwest Fill Management providing affordable lap-band fills for weight loss surgery patients. I also recommend joining the Yahoo group PNW_Bandsters@yahoogroups.com to find out about Support Group meetings all over the Seattle-Tacoma area, the Olympic Peninsula, western Washington, and the whole Pacific Northwest area. If you have not yet joined a support group, I highly recommend it as you will find caring support from some very nice people who have all been through the surgery (or are about to do so). The details for the Port Orchard Support Group are: LeGarmache Catering 1327 Bay Street Port Orchard, Wa 98366 360-895-0602 Both of the owners of LeGarmache have LapBands, too. Good luck in your journey. For the record, I am a retired 69 year-old man. Before the surgery, I weighed 294, and my goal is 205 pounds. Even my doctor does not think that I should go all the way to the ideal weight of 184 on the rather outdated height-weight chart on which ideal weights are based. My surgery was on April 16th 2008 and I have lost 58 pounds to date and weighed 236 yesterday. I have a 14cc band and am currently filled with 10.6cc.

I am happy to report that Medicare paid for all but $1024 of my LapBand surgery and my supplemental paid that. The total cost to me was $17 for the TV and phone. I suggest that anyone who is considering LapBand Surgery and who is eligible for Medicare check with www.BeLiteWeight.com JoAnne and the ladies there are great. I have sleep Apnea, Reflux, arthritis, high blood pressure and I was over 100 pounds overweight with a BMI of 40. I had in hand reports from the Sleep Apnea Dr. and the Reflux Dr. and my GP all of which supported the need for intervention. I was all set to go to Mexico, because there was a 2 year wait-list locally. Mexico did not scare me because I know too many people who have gone to Mexico for medical and dental work and have had nothing but good to say about it. BeLiteWeight also makes arrangements for Mexico in Tia Juana and I have met several people sho have gone there and were very happy with the experience. Then I did one last search on the Internet using Medicare Accepted LapBand and up popped the BeLiteWeight.com site. I made a call and after a quick discussion, filled out their online medical form and faxed all my other paperwork to them and was scheduled for 2 weeks later. My surgery was done by Dr. Gazaerli (his picture is on the BeLiteWeight home page). I was told initially that I would have to pay the $1024, but when I talked to the coordinator at the hospital and gave her my supplemental insurance information, that was the end of that. My surgery was on April 16th, 2008 at the Detroit Medical Center. So, the only out of pocket expense I had was airfare from Seattle to Detroit and back for my wife and me. We were met at the airport in Detroit and chauffered to the hotel. At the hotel I got a call from the psychiatrist (Dr. K.) who asked me a bunch of questions and was apparently happy with my answers. We spent the night at the hotel and I went in to the hospital the next day. Within hours of waking up, I was walking the halls and actually called into my support group which was meeting for the first time the night of my surgery. I spent the night of my surgery in the hospital and my wife was taken back to the hotel. the next day we were driven back to the hotel and spent the night there. We were taken to the airport by the driver, and that was that. Everything I have described except the flights was paid for as part of the package. Everyone at the hospital was very professional and very courteous and the hospital was squeeky clean all over. That same day there were a total of 7 BeLiteWeight clients at DMC for surgery. As for me, I never even took an aspirin. I had no pain at all, except for the gas and that passed naturally ];-}} For self-pays, the rate at DMC is $11,700. I asked Dr. Gazaerli when I was in the pre-op area how the DMC was able to do this at that price, and I got an astonishing answer "Because we are here to help people!" One final comment, what do I do for my fills??? I just had my first fill yesterday. I had to drive 80 miles plus a 30 minute ferry ride each way to a small clinic in Arlington WA where I had the fill. The clinic is run by a nurse who has been banded. The clinic was recommended by BeLiteWeight and charged $125 which I assume is out of pocket. Future fills will be at another support group that meets about 60 miles from home on the 3rd Wednesday on alternate months (the May meeting was too early for the first fill.) If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at howerton@wavecable.com to call please email me first. Chuck Howerton in Sequim WA

I am happy to advise everyone that an new Support Group has been formed in Sequim, Washington. We meet on the second Wednesday of the month at St. Luke's Episcopal Church. The church is located at 525 No. 5th Avenue. The meeting is held in the basement of the church hall. Use the down ramp on the south side of the building or enter through the church hall, find the down stairs and go through the double doors and through the common room to the room at the far right. Everyone is welcome from anywhere. Visitors to the area, please come. Chuck In Sequim 1-360-582-3788

Sorry, I should have added that the next meeting is this cooming Wednesday May 21st at 6PM.

There is a new support group in Sequim. We meet on the 3rd Wednesday at 6PM at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 525 n. 5th Avenue. Call 360-582-3788 for help or directions. Chuck Howerton

Hi All, My last post was a diatribe about age discrimination under Medicare and by the various clinics in the PNW area. Well, guess what. With the help of some very nice people in California, my LapBand was arranged at Harper University Hospital in Detroit for last Wednesday. My doctor was Dr. Gazayerli who actually invented some of the instruments used in laparoscopic surgery. How lucky can you get. It was a cake-walk. The worst part of the whole deal was the darned airplane ride on NorthWest to and from Detroit. Now, for the trip down to 205...

:rolleyes2:I have been to two different support groups since the beginning of the month and I am very impressed the people and the genuine caring that I felt. I started with the Silverdale group on the first Sunday and met three wonderful ladies, Kelly, Donna, and Brenda. They all openly discussed what they had been through and the progress they made since banding. They were very encouraging and I felt quite at home. Thank you ladies. Last Wednesday evening, I went to the Port Orchard support group (about 15 people) and I can only say I was overwhelmed. As is typical of a group like that, we began by introducing ourselve to the group. As I was two thirds of the way around the table from the first person it was a while before it was my turn. I would guess that each person took about five minutes to introduce themselves and tell us where she (all ladies in the first 2/3rds, but one other man in the last third) was in her journey. When they got to me and I told them I was not banded yet the response was fantastic. Every one was helpful and I got so much information, that as I said above I was overwhelmed. I know that they spent almost a half hour just making me feel welcome and filling me full of encouragement and helpful advice. I wish my wife had been able to be there to hear what was said. I had insurance questions that were addressed. I am almost 69 years old and because of that Medicare is by definition my primary and my Federal BC/BS is an excellent secondary. Good news/bad news ugh. :cursing:Do you know that if I was 64 years 11 months and 15 days old I could have the surgery before my 65th birthday almost anywhere. But because I am over 65 the private clinics will not even talk to me and the one provider I talked to who was Medicare approved told me the waiting list was over two years long. I could be dead by then. Of course, if I did private pay, I could have the band by next week. For the first time in my life, I really feel discriminated against! One clinic actually told me that I would have to sign an agreement not to submit the bill to Medicare after they found out I was over 65. I called BC/BS to see what they could do and was told that the clinic could not legally require me to sign such an agreement and that what I did with the bill once I paid it was my business. BC/BS told me to get it done, submit the bill to Medicare and after Medicare denies most of the claim, I should send it to BC/BS which will pay the balance under the rules for secondary insurance providers. This is exactly what two of the ladies in Port Orchard told me to do as it was what they had done (obviously with a different clinic). Help. help, help! Who else has felt age discrimination and what happened. I know we all have felt another kind of discrimination and are working hard to overcome it. Thanks and blessings to you all Chuck Howerton <- in Sequim

Hi Folks, Believe it or not, I read almost all of the 78 pages of this forum. Somewhere in there I ran across some Costco products that have been useful bothe pre-op and post op. My first concern is with pre-op. Based on what I have read, the Drs at Virginia Mason do not tend to require a pre-op diet (am I wrong about this?). On the other hand, if it is a good idea, then I am willing to do it on my own. What are the suggested foods/drinks for the pre-op diet that will make my liver less fatty and easier to lift out of the way? Who did what and how did it work? No scheduled date yet, my PCP has just tracked down Virginia Mason as a place that accepts my insurance, and I have asked previously what your experiences have been with Va Mason. Sooner is better than later :thumbup: Thanks for your replies in advance

Hello friends, It is beginning to look like my main choice will be Virginia Mason. Can anyone relate their experiences with the Virginia Mason LapBand surgeons and the follow-up care? Thanks, Chuck Howerton

Thanks for the reply Phyl, I look forward to interacting with the members of the forum as I advance towards my banding experience. Just "listening" to the interactions and mutual support gives me hope. I have saved many of the messages that contained eating suggestions like the various foods from Costco. I do not see how I easily could come to any of the support sessions because of the 2 hour drive to get over to the "real world" across Puget Sound or at least the Hood Canal Bridge. But you never know, after the "event" I could come once in a while just to meet all the nice people who have posted here and elsewhere. I have read enough to be comfortable with what is involved in getting banded. I already had my gall bladder out laperoscopically (sp?) and never even took an aspirin for discomfort. As for the KD7JUV, yes, I am a Ham General Class but do not have a radio at the moment. I tried 2m for a while and felt as if I had stepped back to the 1970's and the CB craze. For every repeater there seems to be one guy who dominates the thing so using the hand held for communicating with your friends becomes problematic. I did enjoy DX for a while but then we moved to a "golf course" community where anything as geeky as a ham antenna was strictly forbidden. Yours, Chuck Howerton <- aka KD7JUV

Hello Ladies and James, I just read through the past year and I am amazed at what you all have gone through, how my problems with weight are essentially the same as yours, and how supportive of each other you are. My GP has advised me that I should consider being "Banded". So, I went looking to see what was out there on the subject. It was a bit like drinking from a fire hose. Since I livce in Sequim, I finally narrowed it down to NW WA as the area where I was most likely to find support. Between an appointment with my sleep clinic (yes, I have severe sleep apnea 25/20) and a physicall therapist fo a torn out rotator cuff, I stopped at a local coffee shop for the usual. As I was sipping my brew, I struck up a conversation with a woman and when I told her I had SA, she informed me that she had had SA but it had gone away after she had LapBand surgery. She also informed me that she had lost 104 pounds in 11 months. I took one look and could not imagine her 104 pounds heavier. I would guess she weighs about 125 now. I am not a believer in coincidence, so I assumed that my Guardian Angel had arranged the meeting. Regretably, I had to leave in a hurry and neglected to get her name so that I could talk with her some more about her experiences. I do not know anyone in Sequim (or anywhere else for that matter) who has had LapBand surgery and I am anxious to find someone. Is there anyone out there between Silverdale and Forks who is a Bandster? Are there any LapBand clinics anywhere on the Olympic Peninsula? Thanks and blessings to you all, Chuck Howerton PS: What does PB stand for?