QuincyGirl

Hello, I did try it for a few months and I did have energy if you want to call it that,,,,it actually made me feel very anxious and wired. I did loose a little weight with it but not very much. I gave up because I did not like the way it made me feel. I too am on a 6 month diet trying to get an approval. Good luck and hoping for the best. :-)

Hello, I am currently on my 6 month diet (Health Allience) and am hoping to get an approval. I have gone to the seminar but have since learned that I will have to have co-morbid conditions due to my size (38.4) BMI. I actually weighed in at 255 lbs 2 1/2 years ago but have managed to loose 70 lbs on my own. The bad part is that I have now gained back a good deal of that weight (now at 223) but still fall below the 40 BMI requirement. I am wondering if they will use the starting weight back whwen I was 255 or if they will only use my current weight? I considered doing this by self pay but I am really scared about the fact that insurance will not coever any problems related to complications of the lap band. I have had other surgeries that went bad so I know first hand that things can go wrong. Anyway, sorry to keep rambling on,,,,I just wanted to say hi to other people in my area that is going through the same things. The support is wonderfull and I hope the best for us all. :smile2:

Thanks for the info. Sounds like you found a pretty good deal with your local Dr. I have not looked into others yet. I am still going to try to get an approval before I actually go out and self pay but am dtill going to go through with it even if my insurance wont approve me. I am going to try to get a sleep study to see if I have sleep apnea. I just dont have any real severe problems. Good luck with your surgery.

Does anybody know if you have to have a passport to go to Mexico to have surgery, and also, what happens if there are complications? Will any insurance cover you if problems occur? Even if complications occur months later?:shades_smile:

I did try Meridia for a while and I did lose around 20 pounds however it was not easy. I dont always eat just because I am hungry and all Meridia does is suppress the appetite. I will say however that it did supress the hunger and I did not have any negative side effects from it. Good luck with the 6 month diet, I have just started mine as well.

I went to a web site to see this AP band and it looks pretty nice. I will be asking my Doc about it when/if I get that far with this long long process. Good luck to all of us.:shades_smile:

My insurance does cover it but may not cover mine. I do not have any severe co-morbid problems that I am aware of and my BMI is only 38.4. I think I may have sleep apnea but have not had test done yet. I definately have the symptoms for it. I realy want this help and may just have to be a self pay but I will at least try insurance first. Thanx for the replies.

I have a BMI of 38.4 and am wondering if I lose too much weight will I still be able to get the surgery? I have to do a 6 month diet with my PCP and I am presently at 220 lbs and if I get below 204 I will fall below the 35 BMI requirement. I feel bad about my weight and want to start losing but I know I can lose weight.......keeping it off is another story. Has anybody lost enough to fall below the 35 BMI mark and still able to get the surgery? I have Health Alliance insurance.:thumbup:

So what co- morbitities qualifies? I dont have any of the standard ones that I am aware of, no high BP or no diabetes or heart problems. Family history is awful ( all sisters have had by pass surgery or stents and both parents died from heart disease). Does family history count that you are aware of?

I have not had my surgery yet but was told by my my insurance company and the Dr. that my insurance requires an overnight stay as well. I think it will be fine though, and I will feel better knowing that things are ok the next day before going home.:thumbdown:

Thanks for all the replys. I am going to call the bariatric clinic on Monday and see if we can go ahead and start all the other test that need to be done. I too would like to be able to go ahead with the surgery as soon as the 6 months are up. I am looking so forward to the new me:biggrin:

What kind of shakes is everyone using and how often do you have to drink them? Is it more important to get more fiber or more protien?

:eek:What happens when you get the stomach flu and need to vomit? I know that was a gross question but I am wondering how things work after being banded. Is it going to be damaging to the band?

I will be atending my seminar on Feb 20th and I am wondering exactly what do these seminars pertain? I mean is it telling us all about the surgery itself or the pre-post diet , etc.? Also has anybody had their surgery in Springfield IL with Dr. Hammer ?

I have called my insurance company and was told they do cover the lap band surgery and that I do qualify as far as weight ( BMI 38 ). I have my appointment for the seminar at the bariatric clinic and will be getting my referral from my PCP on the 25th. They did mention somthing about requiring that I have tried a 4 month weight loss program through my physician but would look at my last years history with him and possibly accept teh weight loss I have already had being monitored by my Dr. Ayway, I am excited to get things going and have realy learned a lot from all of you out there. Looking forward to chatting with you all and looking for support. Thanks :wink_smile:

What is optifast and is it something you can get without a script for it? Could you drink slimfast in its place?

I was thinking the same thing. I hope I can do the diet.....I sure have not done so well so far.