MacMadame

When we had this conversation the first time, the DSers on OH went nuts. Then one came to another WLS forum I'm on and he was nuts too. I understand secretly thinking your own WLS is the best, but any rational person can see that not everyone is the same and not everyone needs the same surgery or will do well with the same surgery. But all the DSers I see online insist that their surgery is THE BEST and all the other surgeries are second best. It's just weird IMO. They base their "the best" comment on some study that showed DSers lost more weight. But you know, most of the WLS I've seen vary in how much weight you can lose and how much people keep off on average and, for the most part, when you are talking about the 5 year mark, it doesn't seem to matter too much. The stats are all pretty close when it comes to average weight loss. But even if wasn't, it's not all about how many pounds you lose. There is also quality of life. Anyway, most of the other WLS types have patients who are relatively normal and can accept that other WLS types might be better for someone else. Why can't the DSers?

I have to pee right now! It's all your fault, too.

If your full nerve is broken, WLS -- of any type -- will fix it. Opti-fast won't fix it. I call my full nerve my hunger thermostat and mine is broken too. One thing I've been doing is try to stop eating as soon as I eat 1 cup of food. I figure that if I'm going to be hungry again in a 1-2 hours no matter how much I've eaten, why not eat less? It does help. I've lost around 10 lb. doing that. But will I lose the other 75-90 and keep it off? I don't know. I do know I'm sick and tired of being hungry all the time and trying to trick my brain and my hunger thermostat. So that means I'm getting WLS. Because WLS works and diets don't.

People send in post cards that show a secret. Some of them are quite clever. This one makes me sad though.

Your father's friend is an ass. Asses are annoying in general but then they try to pretend that their asshattery is really just "concern" and that's even worse. Yeah, I'm sure he's *really* concerned that you are going to end up like Karen Carpenter. Because she was a morbidly obese woman who started dieting and couldn't stop. Only not. The reality is that these people just want to be negative and say something mean. If you were struggling to lose weight or starting to regain, they could say how "concerned" they were about your health, but you've taken that away from them by being successful. So now all that is left is the lamest "concern" in the book. Now if you had a BMI of 17 and were talking about how you needed to lose at least 10 more pounds and exercising excessively and wearing clothes that were at least a size or two too big because you were convinced you were a big fatty, he'd have a point. But otherwise? He's just an ass. Feel free to tell him I said so. (And, yes, I am in a pissy mood. Why do you ask? :cursing:)

No one ever has my name when I go to a new board. I've this screen name since 1986 when it was called a "handle". Yes, I'm really that old. :cursing:

IMO, it's really insensitive to people who have real EDs to throw around the words anorexic like that. While some people's first trigger for an ED is to go on a diet, it's not like anyone who doesn't eat like a pig is anorexic.

I used black duct tape to repair some torn leather on my black messenger bag. Duct tape is AWESOME. No one is up at my house. Two kids, 1 dad, 1 FIL and they are ALL sleeping in. I'd like to sleep in but dh is SNORING like crazy and I can't sleep.

I have been at LBT for about 5 months now and in that time I've seen a trend for doctors to progress their patients through the food stages as fast as possible. Do you think that this is part of why the stats are higher now than the older stats? It seems that way to me. I'm also guessing that with more surgeons doing this surgery, that there are more duds in the bunch -- that seems to be the way of things -- and that can't help either. I really think a stat of 3% is troubling, but a stat of 7% is appalling. If my chance of winning the lottery was that high, I'd play every day!

Weird. I just had a conversation today about how fish makes me gag. It must be something in the air. I think you need a magic wand. :frown:

I have to say that when I first watched a lap band surgery online, I was a bit taken aback to see the surgeon grab a bit old piece of stomach and hoist it up and sew it in place. :frown: Lots of LB articles don't mention this at all or about how scar tissue needs to form to adhere the band in place.

I think he just needs to hit that horse a little harder. :smile:

Stuff happens with a band that can't really be blamed on anyone. Erosion and slippage are known complications with bands. If you have them, the band manufacturer won't pay your costs and the surgeon won't either. If the warranty is for *any* complication no matter what the cause, then it sounds like a good idea to me. I'm not sure I'd want to pay that much though and only 18 months of coverage wouldn't really be enough. I believe there is a financing plan that includes this sort of coverage (BLIS?) that isn't as expensive but no surgeon near me offers it. If I were self-pay, I'd want something like that.

Aw, how sweet you guys are... I'm not really going anywhere. I'm just going to try to take it EASY until my band journey gets back on track. Unless WasA talks me into getting a sleeve, that is. :smile: There are no great sleeve boards that are like LBT though. :crying:

I've been thinking about taking a break too. Mostly because at this point, I'm not learning a lot new about being banded but I haven't got my band yet so I can't contribute on the threads asking for advise and experience.

So what is NARCH and should I be interested in it? :rolleyes2: We could have LBT get-together even if people aren't going to the NARCH-thingie. I'm always up for a party.

That's a pretty common requirement, actually. It's funny how these things go in cycles. A few weeks ago it seems like everyone who had UHC was getting approved just like that, no 6 month diet, no 5 year weight history. Now it seems like no one is getting approved. I was just about to switch to UHC too. My company is in open enrollment right now.

cosmos, you make it sound like researching band surgeons is some sort of mysterious process full of secret signs and handshakes. It really isn't. There are plenty of places where real people post their real experiences on the web. You can also ask the coordinators of the various surgeons some questions. You can go to support groups and talk to patients in person. You can ask the surgeon for references. I did that for surgeons in my area on my insurance plan. I discovered fairly quickly by searching LBT that there is one entire group that has unhappy customers and a high infection rate. Another surgeon is a pompous ass, a good surgeon, but does what works for him, not what you want. Another one has placed less than 100 bands. Etc. Etc. There were a few surgeons I couldn't really get a read on and a few surgeons who were consistently raved about and had good stats. So I'm sticking to the ones I can get a good read on and that don't have problems that pop up online on a regular basis. Maybe one of those surgeons people say bad things about is actually fantastic and I'm missing out by not going to them. But it's unlikely if you hear consistent stories from a variety of sources about a particular surgeon or office that they are all lies and, besides, why take a chance with your health. Yes, it's true that every surgeon has patients with complications. But if you have a choice, why knowingly pick a surgeon who has many more complications than the others? Or one who won't give you their stats? Or one whose references won't call you back? As for screaming to the heavens that people should avoid Mexico if they value their health, it's not logical. If I had a bad experience with a band surgeon in my area and came on here screaming "Don't get banded in California!" people would laugh their asses off at me and I wouldn't blame them. It would be different if you were screaming "Avoid Arturo Rodriguez -- he almost killed me" because that's telling people about your experience. It's not condemning every doctor in an entire country based on your experience with one doctor.

Me either. Pout. (Not really. I am not into collecting "Friends".)

You misread me, I think. I am looking at costs of one insurance vs. another. I know the sleeve is a little more than a band, but that's not my big issue. My big issue is that I don't want to change my insurance. The one I have works really well for me and the one I have to switch to isn't a good choice for me overall, but will cover a band. So is it worth it to switch in the long run? That's what I'm struggling with. If it's not worth it and I have to pay myself, then I'm going to get what I want when I want it. I can't see saving a few thousand and not getting what I want when I'm spending 8 to 20 thou. (depending on where I go and what I get). That's just not my approach to money. But if I decide to stick with insurance, I have limitations. My best guestimate is that even with insurance, I will still be out-of-pocket $4200 this next year. I can lower the damages by using a FSA for that amount. But if I'm going to spend $4200 and then have higher out-of-pocket expenses every year for years, why not spend $8000 and get my band in Oct. when I want it without having to do a 6 month diet and other things that I find to be silly? Or get a sleeve if that is what I want? This is how my mind works... I know other people have a different approach to finances and for some people $4000 is a lot of money to be saving. But for me, it's about not having to pay much at all vs. paying a lot but getting exactly what I want.

I keep going back and forth. Plus I did a spreadsheet and if I switch insurance my out of pocket expenses will be double what they are now. If I don't switch, I have to self-pay and if I self-pay, then a sleeve seems like a better deal as I don't have to worry about erosion or slippage and having to pay again to take it out. But if I switch, the band will be paid for 90% after my deductible is met. They also made some changes in the plan this year but won't post the Plan Summaries with all the exclusions. Man, this insurance stuff is so complicated and unpleasant!

My HOA has a pool. I was the Pool Chair for a year and on the Board for two. I don't believe sunblock really clogs up the filter. We never had that problem. The holes in the filter are much bigger than sunblock! Now hair, people throwing trash in the pool, etc., yes, those messed up our filter. OTOH, when someone slathered with sunscreen jumps in the pool and it's not a water-proof kind, it does make the Water kind of slimy for a while. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the real reason behind the sunblock ban. :thumbs_up:

The last time I visited the Oregon Coast, my son accidentally fell into the ocean.

:frown: I forgot to say that most days I use my car as a blow dryer. :thumbs_up:

I was re-reading their policy statement and this time I interpreted the text differently. It says something about "no weight loss reported at 3 years" and I first interpreted that as "no one had maintained their weight loss at 3 years" but I read it again and this time I interpreted it as "no study has reported on weight loss at the 3 year mark". It's very confusing because the way they worded it really can be interpreted both ways. I'm guessing the meant the later though. Why can't these medical people just say what they mean! :thumbs_up: