Enchanted

Yeah..it's messed up.

Don't lose the weight and you don't get approved. Lose too much weight and they say you don't need the surgery.

Because health insurance is nearly always linked to employment and because people change jobs (and therefore insurance carriers) every few years, health insurance companies don't want to pay for anything long-term.

Nice, right? Pisses me off, to be frank. (And I have excellent health insurance, didn't have to do the pre-op diet thing, and had under $1k out of pocket.)

The insurance profession in this country is messed up if it requires people to lose weight prior to WLS. If we could lose weight, we wouldn't need the surgery. Amazing.

My doc doesn't want us taking ibuprofen either.

I have to take it during my period to be able to function. There is a children's liquid that I'm going to try - seems like it will go down for us like it would for anyone who is not banded and maybe a little more safe.

It's either take the meds or not be able to function for 2-3 days out of each month :confused:

Get back on track as soon as possible and definitely don't do this again...you really do risk your healing.

It's hard...getting started with this new way of living.

You have to take care of you.

At first, the people in my life were not super-supportive of my surgery either.

Here's what I did....but I'm mean. RAWR!

* sent them all a bunch of links and asked them to read and learn

* told them how much I wanted this for me

* demanded their support

I really did demand their support. "I'm going to do this. I need this for me. And I need you to support me."

They all came around....because, really, I don't ask much from people and this time, I demanded it. RAWR!

GasX Strips could be helpful.

Elastic band pants.

Extra pillows to prop yourself up with - or buy a couple of those wedge pillows - so nice.

I ended up with dry lips - chapstick helps.

Here's a link

Smoking: Should I Quit for Surgery and Anesthesia?

Please don't lie to your doctor. Seriously, they are only doing their job and when you don't give them complete and accurate information, you make their job more difficult and put yourself at risk.

i guess i will try with the band...

This comment has me a little worried for you.

It's major surgery and will forever change the way that you eat. It's not like trying some crazy new diet for a week and if you don't like it, you don't have to do it again.

I want to be supportive. I just want to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. And while it's reversible, it's still surgery.

Maybe a little more research.

Because you end up dealing more with the office staff and nurses than the doc, you should make sure you're completely comfortable with them before having your surgery there.

Having said this, I can understand things from their perspective, too. They probably deal with hundreds of people who want information and then never follow- through with treatment plan. Yes, it's up to them to keep it fresh and make sure they are treating everyone as individuals, but when most insurance companies require the same things, the office staff can end up going on rote.

If you really want this practice, try to make it work. Make yourself stand out. "I'm Christine...and I'm the one with the insurance that doesn't require a 6 month supervised diet...remember? I have a question." It only takes a few times for them to get to know you.

When I first started drinking them, I couldn't find any that I liked. I ended up going with the New Whey Protein Shots because ounce for ounce, they had the most Protein.< /p>

Eventually, I got over my hatred for the shakes. What still bothers me is that all of the shakes are sweet - too sweet.

I have had this same problem. I'll be ok for a couple of weeks, and then suddenly too tight. It really does seem to be completely related to my menstrual cycle.

I've asked about this at my doc's, they say that sometimes it happens (getting suddenly too tight) for no apparent reason.

Fickle Band Syndrome.

There are two kinds of gas that are being discussed here...

- intestinal gas - the GasX strips will help from that

- gas from the inflation of your abdomen to facilitate the surgery

I think the OP is talking about the second. Walking will help with that. I used a heating pad on my upper back / shoulders and that helped quite a bit, too.

Put your fork / spoon / cup down between bites. If other people are in your household, engage in conversation. If no one else is in the house, you might try taking a bite and then reading a few sentences in a book before your next bite.

It will become habit to eat more slowly soon.

My suggestion is that you find something else to occupy your time besides food.

Start a new book? Take a short walk? Find a craft project to work on? Paint your nails? Take up meditation? Research something you've always wanted to know more about online? Annnnnything to get your mind busy with something else.

Very good! You must be relieved that you're not facing a delay!

I do the same thing, Dan. What I've tried (and seems to be working so far!) is to extend the time that I'm on shakes only and soft foods as long as I can stand it before going back to regular foods - and then since I'm so used to eating less and watching every bite, I don't go back to those bad habits.

I've not heard of anyone having a delayed reaction to being stuck either.

You definitely did the right thing by getting to the hospital.

While I didn't suffer from depression, I did recently gain weight. Weight that I thought was gone forever. Bleh.

I'd told myself it was only a few pounds..and then it was a few more...and a few more. And...bleh.

Then...I was too embarrassed to go to the doctor. So I gained a few more.

Then!...I got my head together and realized I needed help. So I went to the doctor and when I thought the nurse was being a little judgmental, I said, "You know what? I'm here now. At least I came back."

So...go back to your doctor. It might suck. But you are there for help. You are paying them. It's their job to help you.

And once you start losing weight, you'll remember how good that feels and you'll be glad you went.

xoxo

You might try replacing some of the carbs you're eating with Protein. Protein digests more slowly and doesn't give a spike to your blood glucose levels and will be less likely to cause you to be hungry in the mid-afternoon.

It's so different for everyone. I work from home and took three days. If I had to leave the house, it would have been longer - I was feeling tender - both in terms of physical and emotional.

It sounds like you're a bit too tight. If you can't get liquids down, you need to be seen by your doctor as soon as possible. Otherwise, you run the risk of becoming dehydrated.

If you can keep liquids down, you could wait until after the weekend. Stick with liquids only and then try soft foods and see if things go better. If not, then back to the doctor.

Someone else posted wondering why your doc would add more if you were already having trouble getting some foods down - I wonder the same thing.

I still remember one of my favorite threads here: My LapBand is a Fickle Bitch.

At the time, I didn't understand it - but now I do. And so do you :thumbdown:

As time passes, you will probably discover some patterns. I can't eat much in the morning. Warm coffee or tea will help loosen things up for me.

I asked at my surgeon's office about this when I thought I was getting close to full (I wasn't and probably will not). They said that the size of the band is the recommended amount, but they have a few people that they push beyond that amount. She also said they've never had anyone not get restriction.

It's hard. Maybe you could start by eating half of what you usually eat and then next week, half of that. You don't need to give it all up at once.

The problem with those dirty carbs is that they cause more cravings for more of those dirty carbs. It's hard to get off of that merry-go-round cycle.

Woooo!!! Happy for you!

It's totally normal to be nervous before any kind of surgery.

Keep us posted on when you get scheduled.