kdlee

I'm honestly not sure what Kaplan charges. Most insurances cover the fills. My insurance does not, however. :biggrin: I will pay out of pocket. I haven't been too concerned about it yet, though. I figure that I must have the fills, so I'll just pay for it, I guess. I haven't gotten a bill yet.

It's a fill done in radiology. It's done like a normal fill, but they are able to take a live xray and see your port on a screen while accessing it. Dr. Kaplan could not get the needle to go into my port on the 2nd fill so I had to have it done in radiology to make access easier. It was really neat and super easy!

Saundra- I do not drink out of a straw. I too was told not to because of the extra air you swallow. I can, however, drink more than a sip at a time. In fact, I haven't yet noticed a difference in the amount I can drink in one 'gulp'. It is a good idea though to practice taking smaller drinks. It will work well with good restriction. Good questions. :cool2:

I am at 5cc in a 10cc band and I can still eat small amounts of any food that I want. That said, I can not eat large quantities of any food that I want and get full on much much less food than pre-band. I understand that you are frustrated. I feel the same way at times. But, in perspective, you have lost 17 lbs in 6 weeks! That's 5 lbs ahead of the 2lb a week max that my surgeon wants. You are probably feeling more hungry now because the swelling has gone down in and around your stomach and therefore you may have some less restriction. As others have said, this is a slower process but from your stats, you're doing well. Some weeks I have stalled but then make up for it by losing 4-5 lbs in one week. Just stick with it and wait for your next fill. :thumbup:

Good luck wvnascarfan!!!!!!

I understand. I can eat anything in small portions. I am losing 1-2 a week so I wonder if I should even get another fill. I can't help thinking though that if I had good restriction just think how much I would be losing! I too have a hard time fitting in exercise with a full time job and 3 kids. I bought a bike and have been doing that plus aerobics tapes. Good luck to you, I know how hard it is, but we can get through it! :teeth_smile:

Hi there. I'm an RN also and work in an administrative role. I have 3 kids (a 7 year old son, a 13 yr old step-daughter and a 17 yr old step-son). I was banded June 30th. Sounds like we have some things in common and pretty close in stats. I'll try to answer any questions you have and it would be great to have someone to compare with! :teeth_smile:

I'll pm you.

I had the exact same situation. I went in for my first fill and the Dr. wouldn't do it because I was losing without it. I went to my next appointment and explained that I needed the fill and that I had no restriction and he gave it to me. Just explain it to your doctor and I'm sure it will be ok. Believe me, I know how frustrating it is. :teeth_smile:

I could meet you somewhere in Vienna this week if you want. I'm just over in Belpre. It's pretty close to the Atkins shakes. If you mix it with water, it actually has less carbs. It also has more protein than the Slim fast stuff. I don't know how it would taste that way as I haven't tried it. But, I had the chocolate protein powder in the same brand and it tasted ok in water. The way I made the shakes was in a magic bullet with ice. They were kinda like a milkshake. Just let me know where you want to meet. Or, I could drop it off at Jeannie's office if you prefer, but I don't have an appointment there till the end of October. Let me know. :teeth_smile:

The cheapest place I have found them is at Sam's club. There are I think 15 in a case for less than $20. They only have chocolate at Sam's. Walmart has both chocolate and vanilla but they are more expensive there. These taste better than the Atkins shakes and have more protein (20g) a can. But, if you want, I have almost an entire container of Vanilla whey protein that I bought at Walmart that I will give you. I don't really like the vanilla, so it's just sitting here. I think I paid almost $20 for it, but you can have it. If you're interested, it has in 1 scoop 110 calories, 2g fat, 2g carbs and 26g of protein. 1 scoop makes 8 oz. I used the chocolate flavored after surgery to add to pudding and milk. You can add it to any liquid, too.

Good luck! That late of a surgery time will make a long day for you! My surgery was at 2pm and I didn't get to the floor until 9pm. Well, it won't be so long for you because you'll be out of it, but it will be long for your family. Tell them to bring something to do. The cafe is right beside the surgery waiting area, so at least they can eat dinner there. It was about 1 week before I drove. As long as you're on the Percocet and Phenergan, do not drive. They made me like a zombie. But, once I was off those, I started driving again. I'm not sure on the lifting. Ask him about that. Your follow up appointment will be 2 weeks after surgery and he'll probably say it's ok then. Again, good luck to you!!!

Good luck!!!!

Froggi- I know that you will lose on the 2 week diet. I don't have any shadow of a doubt at all. It is so low carb that it throws you into ketosis and the weight comes off. When I did it, it made me pretty tired so I didn't really exercise and still lost the 15 lbs. I drank 2 Slim Fast low carb shakes, which are 190 calories a piece, ate a small chicken breast and some veggies for dinner (~300 calories) and one string cheese for a snack (80 calories). So, I was having roughly 800 calories a day for 2 weeks! You will lose on that. :thumbup: Saundra- I know exactly what you mean about insurance. They covered my EGD but would not cover my husbands! I was too paranoid to call and complain to them because I was afraid that they would want the money back from covering mine!!!

My insurance worked the way I described. I did not have a 6 month diet, but was told if my dropped below 40 on the pre-op period (as I had no co-morbidities) that I would still be covered. In fact, my BMI day of surgery was 37.8 You should call the customer service number on your insurance card and ask them to mail you in writing their specific policy on this. My insurer has a web site also where you can search their policies and read about just how things are covered. But, I would ask them to mail it to you, that way you have it. And, make sure you always write down the date/time and specific name of the person you talked to. I have called my insurer and gotten different responses from different operators. Good luck!

Nope, you always weigh in your clothes at both Jeannie's office and Dr. Kaplan's office. Don't worry about losing too much. You're in the 6 month diet program to prove that you can commit and lose! Insurance goes off your initial weight that was logged on your first visit. Look at the pre-op period as a time to take off as much as you can to make surgery easier on your body and to start your new eating habits. :thumbup:

Hey there. I don't remember being given a specific amount to lose on his preop diet just that I had to follow it. My husband said he was told to lose 10 lbs. Dr. Kaplan's exact words to my husband were "I want your liver to look like steak, not cake" after those 2 weeks. :thumbup: I lost 15 lbs on the 2 week diet and my husband lost 18. He did tell my husband that if he did not follow the pre-op diet he could tell by the liver and if his liver was not how he wanted it, he would not do the surgery at that time. The diet is difficult, but it's only a short 2 weeks out of your life. You'll be really motivated by how fast you lose. My husband was obviously in ketosis while on it because his breath smelled like it does when you do Atkins induction levels. It's not dumb to worry about it :frown: I was worried, too.

No, everyone does not have the same size band. There are 4cc, 10cc and 14cc sizes. Kaplan told me he doesn't like to use the 4cc because there is not much room for playing with fills on them because obviously they are smaller. I have a 10cc band. It's based on the size of your stomach and the amount of visceral fat (fat around your stomach) that is present. My husband has a 14cc band because Kaplan tried a 10cc and decided it was too small. He does put some fill in at time of surgery, or at least he did with me. At my first fill, he pulled back 2cc before adding anything and then gave me 1cc to make what I thought was a total of 3cc. However, at my fill yesterday, they got back 4cc so I guess there was an extra cc hanging out in there that he didn't get back on the first aspiration. So...if you're following me :tt1:...that means I had 3cc in at the time of surgery because I've had 2cc added but I'm at a total of 5cc now. Hope that makes sense!:bolt:

Kaplan puts them all on the right side. Mine is right above my waist line, but I believe he is now putting them a little higher. My husband was banded 2 months after me on 8/25 by Kaplan and his is on the right 1/2 way between his breast and waistline. I can not see mine yet but I can feel it when I push on that area, especially when laying down. It was tender for about a month after surgery, but now I can not tell it is there. Every once in while when I bend over it bothers me when my pants hit it. But, it's not a pain or anything--I just realize it's there when that happens.

First, I'm sorry that you had to be part of scene like that. I know that I would have been embarrassed. But, that said...I have gotten a subway sandwhich and took the toppings off the bread. Their 6 inch subs are only 2.50 or something like that. I don't think it could get much cheaper. I choose not to single myself out when eating out. It's not the restaurant's fault I chose to alter my stomach. They make sub sandwiches. That's off limits to us. If you must go to Subway then get it in a wrap or a salad.

Wow, that's impressive! I'm glad there's someone out there fighting for us!!:bolt: Congratulations!

Elizabeth- He doesn't do the fluoro fills at all. Dr. Shank (radiology) and Jeannie do them and it depends on Dr. Shank's schedule. Are you in nursing school? (I think I read that on here.) I'm an RN if you ever have any questions! :thumbup:

I'll be flying for the first time after being banded in 3 weeks. I was told not to eat or drink on the flight so as to avoid complications.

Jennifer- They made us pay our out of pockets too before they would even do the EGD. It was about $1500 for the 2 of us. At least they gave you somewhat of a warning. They told me 1 week before my EGD and I had to whip out $750. I was like...ok...so much for the savings! lol. I have a picture from this Christmas where I was hiding behind my 13 year old step-daughter who is the same height as me and weighs 130 lbs. Like she was really going to hide me!!! Elizabeth- I added you to Myspace. Thanks! I understand how discouraged you are. I was so down last week after he couldn't get my fill in. My very first fill visit back at the end of July, he wouldn't fill me because he said I had lost over 20 lbs since my pre-op visit. That's fine, except that I lost 18 lbs on my pre-op liquid diet! I was so frustrated. I'm hoping this fill today helps. Up to this point I could eat anything and I mean anything. It was like no restriction. All I've had today after my fill is some Water and a slim fast and I'm not hungry, so we'll see. I'm on liquids for 2 days. I have 5cc in my 10cc band now. He tried getting me standing up last week and it didn't work. It wasn't me that you talked to. I thought the only other person on June 30th was a guy, but I must have been wrong!

Thanks!!! Where have you been? I was wondering how you and your husband were doing. How far are you into your 6 month diet? I will try to take some pictures this weekend and post. For so long I have always been so camera shy and avoided cameras at all cost. We haven't even had a family pic taken in 6 years because I looked so bad in the last one! It just seems weird taking pictures now. :thumbup: