kcmomx3

I had my surgery on July 24. My doctor told me for the first 6 weeks after my surgery, weight loss is not what your aiming for. This is your time to let your stomach heal. It takes 6 weeks on average for your scar to heal around your stomach. He also said that after I'm able to start to eat real food again, to eat until I'm full. Sometimes it seems like quite alot of food. I do keep a journal about what I'm eating. This helps me keep track. Sometimes just writing it down, makes you realize more what exactly you've put in your mouth. Then other times I eat and it just gets to where it doesn't intrest me anymore. Like the food is blahh.:thumbdown: So I stop. I am very happy with my continued or stable weight loss. I lost 13 pounds on my all liquid diet, 2 weeks prior to surgery. And another 9 pounds the week after. About 10 days after my surgery I lost my restriction feeling.:biggrin: But I've managed to hold on only fluctuating up and down by 1/2--2 pounds. They also said that if you gain some weight back that's normal, because your healing. But I'm really glad that I havn't. It is devasting to see the scale move the other way.

kcmomx3--who was your doctor? I live just a few miles away, in Independence.

Linksmom-thanks for the encouraging words-think i might just go crazy over-analyzing this post op period. My surgeon was Dr. Stephen Malley at Menorah Medical Center in Overland Park, KS-any chance he did yours also? Sounds like we have similar paths-mine was done on 8/21-I am 10 days out today-I lost 14 pre-op, then nothing that week after which really threw me into this funk as I was a rule follower. He has cleared me for softer foods and next week whatever I want-just can't wrap my mind around what that food should be. (still do Protein shakes or not? I just am so afraid to eat most anything as i KNOW it will cause me to gain which seems like a step backward. Ya know? I told you I was over-analyzing! Love to know what works for you-I would love that blah feeling about food-that is my whole goal in this process for food to be just a blah subject for me-so hoping I get there! Thanks again for the kind words.

Lori (kcmomx3):wink2:

Hey Ashley-you could not have asked a better question as I am in the same boat as you and am having the same concerns. I was banded on Aug 21-and was fine on the pre-op diet as I had a list of what I could eat/could not eat-then when I went to my post-op visit on Fri and he cleared me for mushies and then next week regular food-I am feeling really lost-like what does that mean? So far everything I have tried has went down fine and now I feel like I have nothing stopping me from eating whatever I want-which I thought being banded was going to do for me. I know that it will require some patience-not my strong suit-but am wondering if I need to be on a self imposed diet of some sort until I am filled? Just wish I had been better prepared for this phase-I am also bummed from gaining a few pounds in the week after surgery when I was still on all liquids-how can that even be possible? Anyway....I am right there with you so don't feel like you are in this alone.

agreed - but the FEP program has a national negotiated fee structure for the customary fees - so should be the same everywhere in terms of the max that they can charge as a preferred provider.

Anyway - just trying to get a ballpark of what the fee is

Thanks

My Federal Employees Blue Cross Standard pays for 90% of the Usual and Customary fees - i.e, I pay 10% for the surgeon and the facility.

Can anybody out there give me an idea of how that translates to my actual out of pocket costs for each of those items?

Just trying to get informed!

Thanks alot!!:thumbup:

I am very new to this whole process-I live in KC, MO and so far had gone to Dr. Malley's orientation and had a consult with him. Now.....onto the insurance stage. I have BC/BS Federal insurance and wondering if I need a letter of all failed past attempts at weight loss and if so, can anyone giveme an example of that letter. Like any of us who have been trying to lose weight for the last 20 years-have it documented somewhere. I don'T. I did get a letter from my primary care stating medical necessity-but the surgical center seems to want more-HELP